Breathe
by Lady Livia
Summary: The Seventieth Annual Hunger Games. Annie Cresta goes in unprepared for what she will face... Finnick Odair is also unprepared. Annie crept up on him, and this year he finds it more difficult than ever to sit by and watch the slaughter within the arena.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Annie stared at the ocean. It always seemed to hold the answers for her, but not today. She had to be in the town square in an hour. They all did. Tucking a strand of her dark hair behind her ear, she turned back to head up off the beach. She wondered if Dictrict Four would have a volunteer this year. It was always tough to pick. Some years they did, and some years they didn't. She couldn't decide for this year. The Seventieth Hunger Games. She bit her lip and she brushed sand off her bare feet before putting her shoes back on, trying to think of all those she knew who had turned eighteen and would consider volunteering. She couldn't think of many.

Striding up the path back toward the town, she supposed she'd find out soon enough. Before long she reached her house and hurried inside. Heading into her bedroom, she looked around for her hairbrush. Pulling it through her beach tangles she listened to her parents moving around in the next room. After a once-over in her mirror and deciding that the top and skirt she was already wearing was good enough, she quickly headed into the living room.

"Not that many options this year." Her father said simply. Annie blinked and her mother's face fell.

"She'll be fine..."

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Annie murmured.

"So we're ready then?" her father asked. Annie nodded and followed him to the door. "I've heard talk that the prize money is going up..." he said, looking around at her mother. "That should interest a few volunteers..."

"Second prize is still the same, though." Annie muttered. She glanced around when her mother smoothed her hair down gently. Giving her a smile, Annie then followed her father down the path and on to the street.

Not long later, Annie took her place in the town square with the other girls around her age. She knew she didn't have much reason to be uneasy, but as she shuffled her feet, she couldn't help the nervousness all the same. She chewed her lip as she watched Pansy Clementine, the District Four escort move toward the microphone at the edge of the stage.

Tuning out to the woman's usual tirade, Annie turned her attention to the other girls standing with her. Looking at each of them out of the corner of her eye, she tried to work out who would volunteer. Tari, standing beside her, wouldn't. She'd been Annie's closest friend since they'd first started school as kids. Tari had become responsible for caring for her mother who had gotten sick after her older sister had volunteered for the Games four years earlier and had died. No, Tari wouldn't volunteer.

Not too far away, a blonde girl caught Annie's eye. She was tall and looked well built, like the girls who had spent time training did. Annie would have put money on the fact that this girl hoped to be a career tribute. She didn't know how old she was, though. Perhaps sixteen. Would she think her training was finished? Did she feel ready? Did she think she was good enough? Annie didn't know.

She looked at Tari when her friend took her hand and she realised that Pansy Clementine had come to the end of her spiel. She watched the colourful woman walk slowly toward the glass bowl of names.

"Why does she always seem to move in slow motion when she gets to this bit?" Tari muttered to her.

Annie made a face. "She probably thinks that it's dramatic." She replied.

Tari nodded. "Probably..."

They both fell silent when Pansy stopped at the bowl and reached inside. They watched as she dug her hand around for what seemed like an eternity. They watched silently as she withdrew her hand and walked just as slowly back to the microphone. Tari squeezed her hand and Annie gave her a reassuring smile. Surely the fates couldn't be cruel enough to take Tari _and_ her sister. Tari wasn't trained like her sister had been. Her friend would stand no chance against those from Districts One and Two. She couldn't be chosen. She just couldn't.

"Someone will volunteer... Don't worry." She whispered to her friend. Tari nodded.

Eventually, Pansy readied herself and opened her mouth to speak. "And the female tribute from District Four is... Annie Cresta!"

Annie blinked. Tari's hand tightened on hers. Annie Cresta. No.

"...Someone will volunteer..." Her friend whispered. Heads were slowly turning toward her and Annie couldn't breathe.

"Annie Cresta." Pansy called again. "Where are you, Annie?"

Annie shook her head, looking around. Someone was going to volunteer! Where was the volunteer? Who was it? She couldn't breathe!

"Annie..." Tari breathed as people stepped away from them and the Peacekeepers headed toward them. "You have to go..."

"There she is... Come up, Annie..." Pansy's voice called loudly.

Annie looked around her again, her gaze falling on the blonde girl nearby. She blinked when the girl avoided her eye. The Peacekeepers drew closer and Annie couldn't breathe.

"Go..." Tari let go of her hand. Annie looked at her and then her feet were moving. The Peacekeepers surrounded her and escorted her closely up to the stage. She walked unsteadily up the steps and then Pansy took her hand and led her to the centre of the stage.

"Finally! Annie Cresta! What a pretty young lady you are, Annie."

"...Thanks." She forced out, looking at the sea of faces before her.

"Okay, well... now for the male tribute. Let's find out, shall we?"

Annie blinked silently, and watched as Pansy did her painfully slow walk over to the bowl of names. She fisted a handful of her skirt as Pansy slowly pulled another slip of paper out and came back to the microphone.

"And the male tribute for District Four is Alcon Pontir!"

Annie looked at the crowd again. She had no idea who that was. As the crowd parted, she spotted a skinny boy of about fourteen walking slowly toward the stage. Even with the significant distance between them, Annie could see his freckles standing out in stark contrast to his pale skin. The boy hadn't gone more than twenty steps when a tall bronzed boy pushed his way forward and loudly volunteered to take his place. A cheer went up and the boy smiled widely and turned to wave in the direction the sound had come from. "And District Four has a volunteer! Marvellous!" Pansy exclaimed.

Annie watched as the boy bounded up the steps and over to Pansy and the microphone. "Hello..."Pansy smiled, "And what is your name?"

The boy winked at Pansy and leaned forward, flashing a dazzling white smile toward the cameras televising the reaping to all of Panem as he said loudly "Torsti Oiva."

"How wonderful!" Pansy said enthusiastically, clearly pleased with her new tribute. "Are you looking to make a name for yourself, Torsti?"

"Well," Annie watched Torsti grin, "I already have a bit of a name for myself," he paused to flash another grin at the cameras, "But I thought it was about time District Four had another victor in the Hunger Games... it has been five years afterall..."

"Oh..." Pansy just about clapped her hands she was so excited, "Are you looking to become the next Finnick Odair?"

"We'll see..." Torsti straightened himself and waved to someone in the crowd.

"Oh, how exciting!" Pansy was now just about bouncing on the balls of her feet, although Annie didn't know how she was managing it in those shoes. "Well, everyone... I give you District Four's tributes for the Seventieth Annual Hunger Games!" She turned to look at Annie and Torsti and began clapping enthusiastically.

Annie barely registered that this was the moment that she and Torsti were supposed to shake hands, when he'd suddenly wrapped an arm around her shoulders and held her firmly as he waved to the crowd and the cameras, that huge smile flashing brightly once more. A few minutes later, they were ushered back behind the heavy doors at the back of the stage and put into separate rooms. She supposed this was where she would say goodbye to her family before she was taken away for good.

Sitting on a plush couch, she stared silently at a wall as she waited. After barely a minute the door opened and her parents walked in.

"Oh, Annie..." he mother sobbed and Annie's eyes immediately filled with tears. "I can't believe this is happening... I can't believe nobody volunteered..."

"They all know what happens to the victors." Her father muttered.

"Not all of them." her mother replied, shooting her husband a look. "That boy volunteered."

"You heard him. He wants to be the next Odair... swanning in and out of the place. I'll bet he can't wait to get his hands on some capitol women."

Annie blinked.

"Stop it." Her mother said, before looking back to Annie. "You'll have your mentors. You're clever, Annie. Learn from them. Mags cold teach you so much... and Finnick... he was so young when he won. He could help you too. Listen to them."

"He won because the capitol women with too much money fancied him." Her father cut in.

"It was more than that!" her mother said sharply, looking again back to Annie. "Listen to him. Listen to them both. You're so clever, Annie. You could come home."

Annie nodded, the tears falling from her eyes. Her mother hugged her tightly and Annie couldn't hold in a small sob. Even without seeing the rest of the tributes yet, just the sight of Torsti had confirmed to her that she was no contender. The guy probably weighed four times what she did and she didn't even come to his shoulders. The tributes from districts one and two would probably be equally as large as well as some from other districts. Who was her mother trying to fool? She wasn't coming home no matter what Mags and Finnick taught her.

All too soon the door was opened and her parents were told that their time was up. Annie sobbed again and her mother gave her another tight squeeze before kissing her cheek. "I love you, Annie."

"I love you too, Mum." She choked, unable to make her voice work properly. Her mother let her go and Annie saw that she was crying, too. Before she could try and say anything else, her father had stepped forward and hugged her quickly.

"Do your best, Annie." He said simply and she nodded. Then they were gone and the door was shut tightly behind them. Annie sank back down onto the couch and cried.

About twenty minutes later the door opened and she was being ushered down the hall toward the train that would take her to the capitol. She wish that she'd been able to say goodbye to Tari, but a few years ago when volunteering had been so common they'd changed the rules to only allow family to visit the tributes as each tribute at the time practically had a parade visit them to wish them well.

Annie wiped her face as she stepped onto the platform and noticed the cameras. She wished she'd given more thought to trying to preserve her appearance. The last thing she wanted to do was to make herself look like an easy target to every other tribute who was sure to be watching the day's events over in just a few short hours. She'd just eyed the cameras again while trying to surreptitiously clean her face up when somebody stepped between them and her. Blinking she looked up to see the back of somebody with shiny bronze hair. Finnick Odair. He was recognisable without even having to see his face. He turned his head slightly to look at her over his shoulder and give her a small smile. It was then she realised that he'd blocked the cameras' view of her on purpose, and she continued to quickly clean her up her face.

She gave a small sniff when she was satisfied that she probably didn't look like a complete and utter train wreck and Finnick shifted a little to allow the cameras to get a glimpse of her as they stepped onto the train. The doors closed behind her and the train began to move almost immediately. She gave a small start before realising that Torsti must already be aboard. Blinking, she tucked a loose strand of her long hair behind her ear. It was then she noticed that Finnick Odair was watching her.

"What?" She asked. Not the most eloquent.

He smiled.

"Sorry." She murmured, rubbing her face with her hands. Shaking herself a little she looked back to him. "Thanks for..." She waved a hand at the doors. He nodded.

"My pleasure, Annie Cresta."

"Yeah, okay, Finnick Odair."

He smiled again. Stepping closer, he held his hand out to her and she shook it. Soft, smooth skin. That was a little uncommon in District Four, but then he did visit the capitol a lot. She let his hand go and just looked at him.

"Shall we find Torsti before Pansy tries to molest him?" He asked lightly. Annie almost smiled.

"Wouldn't it be the other way around?"

"Nah, he's just playing the game."

"Well, I'm glad that somebody knows the rules." She muttered.

"That's why you have me."

She nodded and followed him up the train, watching his back as he strode ahead. Broad shouldered and strong, it was definitely more than just Finnick's good looks that won him his games five years prior. She remembered watching those games on television. She'd been thirteen at the time, Finnick just a year older. He'd been so clever in the way he'd presented himself to the others that by the time they'd worked out that he was a real threat it was too late. Yes, she could learn from Finnick Odair.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Annie followed Finnick into a part of the train that was filled with comfortable little couches. On one of the couches, they found Torsti lounging casually as he sipped something from a fine looking cup.

"Hi." He said, giving a small wave.

"Hi." Annie replied, seating herself on the next couch. They both then turned their attention to Finnick who had dropped himself down on a couch opposite them. Nobody was able to say anything however, as the door to the car opened and Pansy came in.

"My..." She said, stopping to just look at the three of them. "Isn't District Four attractive!"

Annie blinked.

"You know it." Torsti winked at their escort who grinned back at him.

"Oh, I like this one." She said.

"He's not for you to play with, Pansy." Finnick said flatly.

"Why not?" she replied, "I'll play with whomever I like, Finnick. You do."

"SO?" Annie cut in, seeing the look that passed across Finnick's face."Where's Mags?"

"I'll go and find her." Finnick muttered, getting to his feet and quickly leaving the car. Annie watched him until the car doors closed behind him, and then turned her eyes on Pansy who had now assumed his empty seat. She watched the woman send smiles and all kinds of signals at Torsti and felt herself growing sicker with every passing second. Now that she was stuck here with these two, the panic she had been trying to keep subdued threatened to overwhelm her. Pansy was clearly only here to further her own interests and Torsti, well, wouldn't he be trying to kill her in just a few days?

Jumping to her own feet, Annie was just about to flee the car when the doors opened once more and Finnick returned with Mags attached to his elbow. Annie smiled at Mags when the woman sat on the only remaining couch and Finnick sat on the armrest beside her. Tributes from other districts often made jokes in the Games about other mentors. District 12's mentor seemed to get the brunt of it, but often somebody would make snide comments about Mags and her age. Looking at the woman now, Annie was sure those who did had never met her as she could see easily in the woman's eyes that this was no senile old lady. Mags was a victor, and though she may be in her eighties, she was very much alert and had much to offer. Annie was glad she'd have Mags for a mentor.

"So, how does this work?" Torsti asked, and Annie turned to look at him. The blond boy was looking at Finnick. "Do you mentor me and Mags does Annie or what?"

Annie looked to Finnick for the answer. That was usually the way of it, though there were no set rules when it came to female mentors and female tributes or the same with the males, as Mags had mentored Finnick himself in his Games five years earlier.

"Mags and I work as a team." Finnick replied, looking first at Torsti and then to Annie. "You will each of you have both of us as mentors."

Annie nodded to show she understood and looked again at Torsti.

"Yeah, okay." He was nodding also and she was pleased to see he didn't look the slightest bit disappointed. So, he was intelligent enough to see the worth in Mags' mentoring. That was promising.

"Do you have set duties?"Annie asked, looking back to Finnick and Mags. "I mean... does one of you handle, say, physical stuff and the other sponsors... or...is the designated listener ..." She broke off hoping they got what she meant.

"Well, yes and no." Finnick replied, "I do physical stuff as you put it... but we won't divide up who you go to if you need to talk about something. That would be futile if I say that's my job but that person can't stand me." He smiled. "Pick whoever you like for that."

She nodded, thinking that made sense.

"And sponsors?" Torsti asked.

"Depends on the point in the games and the tribute..." Finnick responded.

"And what they need..." Annie murmured, more to herself than to add to the discussion. Finnick nodded anyway.

"And what they need." He confirmed.

They fell silent then for a few minutes. Annie stared at her shoes. When it became clear that nobody had anything else of importance that they had to say immediately, she looked up. "What do we do now?"

"Well, dinner won't be until six. After that we'll watch the reapings and you'll see who you're up against."

"Okay... That's two hours away... Can we go to private cars or something? I wouldn't mind having a bit of privacy to have my emotional meltdown..."

"Of course!" Pansy jumped up. Apparently this was her domain. "Come with me, Annie. There's a lovely car that's all yours. I'm sure you'll love the colour scheme. I picked it myself. They let me do that, you know."

Annie got up, threw a half hearted smile at Torsti, Finnick and Mags and followed her escort out the door and into the next car. When they were alone, Pansy started chatting again.

"Usually, they don't let escorts decide things like decorations for trains, it's all standard."

"Oh..." Annie murmured, realising that a response was expected from her at this point.

"Yes, but when I got promoted from District Nine a few years ago, I got some added bonuses. These things come with taking care of tributes from certain districts. You know, I'm very surprised that there was no female volunteer this year. It really let down the excitement factor a bit..."

Annie didn't think Pansy was half as disappointed by that as she was.

"But then of course Torsti appeared..." Pansy continued. "Now that was a little bit exciting..."

"Yes..."

"Here we are!" Pansy opened a door and ushered Annie inside. "Do you like it?"

She did. The car was tastefully decorated with several shades of blue from deep royal shades to sky blue hues. It was relaxing and reminded her of the beach.

"It's beautiful, Pansy."

"You're very welcome. Remember, dinner at six!" With that, Pansy closed the door and left Annie to herself.

Making her way slowly over to the bed, Annie sat lightly upon the deep blue cover. She was on her way to The Capitol and she wouldn't be returning. Now that she was getting closer with every second, she couldn't deny it any longer. She wasn't like those who went in every year to kill as many people as they could to try and win. She was about a third of Torsti's weight, and she was sure that the tributes from Districts One and Two would be just as big as him if not bigger. She didn't stand a chance and she knew it. She remembered the broken way Tari's mother had watched the games the year Patricia had volunteered. Would her own mother have that same haunted expression after watching her being killed? Running her fingers through her tangled hair, Annie groaned. She didn't want to think about that.

When she realised that she was making no improvement upon her hair, she lowered her hands and looked at them. Now that she was alone, they'd begun to shake. Grabbing a tight fistful of her skirt, she tried to get them to stop. Eventually, she lay down upon the bed and closed her eyes. She was thankful that she could have some privacy away from the cameras at least for a bit, because when the silent tears came, she let them fall without challenge.

* * *

Finnick looked at Mags. "It's nearly six. Do you want to check on Annie or should I?" he asked. Mags just nodded and got to her feet, making her way slowly to the car doors. He supposed that was a good idea as Mags would probably be less imposing to the girl than he would. He'd watched Annie after her name had been called and people had moved away from her. He'd seen the shocked look upon her face and watched as she'd looked around her, clearly waiting for somebody to volunteer. He'd seen her turn slightly green when she realised that nobody was going to. She clearly wasn't a Career.

People didn't have to know that, though. He frowned, running his hands over his face. Coming from District Four, she looked healthy and strong. She definitely wasn't half emaciated as some of the other tributes would be. If they played things right, they could give her as much of a chance as anybody. Well, maybe not those from District Two... but, a chance nonetheless. They just had to be careful how they presented her from now on. Yes. He nodded to himself. He could work with this.

He looked up as Pansy came in followed by Torsti. "Dinner time." She announced, and Finnick got to his feet. He watched the two move ahead of him and made a face. He really didn't want to have to do something about them. Pansy really needed to control herself. Maybe he should tell her it's unprofessional. That might shock her into behaving...

He seated himself at the large wooden table and stretched. The smell of the food was wafting through the car and it hadn't even been brought in yet. He smiled at the small basket in the centre of the table containing District Four bread and reached forward, taking one. Turning it over in his hands, he looked around as the car door opened and Mags walked slowly in, followed by Annie. Mags gave him a large smile as she sat opposite him and he couldn't help smiling back. Apparently the woman was pleased about something.

"Are you going to eat that, or just keep molesting it?"

Finnick turned to Annie who was now seated beside him.

"What?"

She nodded at the bread that he was still turning in his hands.

"Oh..." He held it out to her. "Or, I could pass you an unmolested one if you like..."

She took the one he offered. "Thanks." He watched her break it open and pull it into pieces before popping one into her mouth. He reached for another himself. "I love bread." She murmured, and he turned to look at her once more.

"Me too. Have you tried the bread from District Eleven?"

She shook her head. "No..."

"There might be some for breakfast tomorrow. You should."

She nodded. "Okay."

He blinked. Was it tasteless to be telling a girl who was likely going to her death in a few days that she really ought to try some new food? He hadn't meant it that way. He glanced at Annie again but she seemed unconcerned. About the topic, anyway. The slight shaking in her hands hadn't escaped his notice.

He'd just been thinking of something else to say to her when their food arrived. He watched as dish after dish was placed on the table and Pansy clapped her hands in a fluttery fashion.

"Well," she said, looking around at them."Somebody has been rather spoiled this year."

"Whatever they serve us will feel like that." Torsti commented, spooning hefty amounts of casserole onto his plate. Upon tasting it, he made an approving sort of moan and swallowed quickly, waving his spoon around. "Annie, you have to try this."

Finnick reached for a tasty looking rice dish as Annie served herself some of the casserole.

"Go easy on that..." he warned them. "It's heavier than the food back home. You'll make yourselves feel gross." He blinked and watched Mags then load her plate up with a variety of foods. That tiny woman could eat more than any teenage boy he knew.

"This is amazing..." Annie said, looking up from her plate.

"What did I say?" Torsti nodded. "What's it made out of?"

"Oh, this and that..." Pansy put in, sipping soup delicately from her spoon.

"Okay... Less appealing." Torsti commented.

Finnick just smiled, eating his rice. He didn't mind his pair of tributes this year at all. Of course, that just made everything so much worse.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks to those who added this to their favourites and alerts after just one chapter. I'm pleased that you liked it. If you feel like leaving a review and telling me what it is that you liked, I'd appreciate that, too.

Thank you.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Annie sat next to Mags on the couch in front of the television. Looking to the screen, she clasped her hands together in yet another attempt to get them to stop shaking. She really had to pull herself together. Torsti sat on her other side and they exchanged nervous glances as the Capitol anthem sounded and they began with the reaping in District One. As was common for District One, they ended up with a tall blonde girl who looked like some kind of irresistible goddess and then an even taller, well built, boy who was the picture of athletic perfection. Flicking glances at both Mags and Finnick, Annie noticed that neither of them wore any kind of expression and she wondered if that was for the benefit of herself and Torsti.

District Two only got worse. Both the volunteers absolutely terrified Annie. The girl looked to be about her height with sleek chestnut hair halfway down her back. The thing that unnerved Annie, though, was the manic look in the girl's eyes. Annie wondered if she wasn't entirely sane. The boy looked to be well over six feet tall and as if he could crush a man's skull with a single hand. She was sure her own skull would prove no challenge to him.

"Well," Finnick said gently, "That was to be expected..." Annie looked at him, meeting his sea green eyes, so very like her own. "We can plan for it..."

She nodded, silent.

As the program moved on to District Three they both returned their attention to the screen. The pair from District Three looked like they usually did. Slight and not physically threatening, but those from District Three usually posed a different kind of threat. They were clever and not to be overlooked.

Then it was their turn. Annie groaned when her name was called and she didn't move. She watched as she looked around, clearly waiting for somebody to volunteer. She might as well have painted a target on her own back. It couldn't have been any more clear that she didn't want to be there. That green colour that she hadn't realised she'd turned just topped the cake. Mags rubbed her arm reassuringly and she looked at her thankfully.

Torsti came off completely differently. Volunteering as eagerly as he had. Appearing out of nowhere looking like he did and then even playing with Pansy on stage. Those perfect grins he kept giving the cameras never failed to hit their mark either. She looked at him sitting beside her. He had himself completely sorted out. He knew what he was doing.

The panic she'd been trying to keep down began to bubble to the surface again, and Annie kept her eyes trained upon the screen as she tried to keep it from getting loose. Only a few of the remaining tributes made any kind of lingering impression upon her. Both the boy and girl from District Six had similar reactions to the one she had when her name was called. The boy from District Seven had a feral look about him that made her skin crawl. The boy from District Eight had to be only twelve or thirteen and she only guessed that because he had to be to have his name in the pool when in fact he looked all of seven years old. The boy from District Nine had flaming red hair. There was the beautiful dark skinned girl with huge dark eyes from District Eleven and finally a skinny dark haired girl from District Twelve who cried openly when her name was called.

Annie stared blankly at the screen as the program ended. She wanted a hug. She wanted her mother to hold her and rock her and tell her that everything was going to be alright. She wouldn't ever see her again, though. She was distracted from her thoughts by Torsti sighing and sitting up straighter on the couch.

"Well," he said, "That wasn't as bad as it could have been..."

"Did you miss the first two districts?" Annie asked mildly. "And the boy from District Seven?"

"Like Finnick said," Torsti replied, "That's to be expected... The boy from Seven may be interesting. We'll have to see what he's got in training... but, nothing was too far out of the ordinary. I'm prepared."

"Annie will be, too." Finnick put in and she turned her eyes on him to see him looking at her. He nodded encouragingly at her. Mags put an arm around her and gave her a loose hug. It was a nice gesture, but the woman was so small and frail that there was no real sense of comfort she could hold on to.

"Thank you." She murmured to her anyway. Mags nodded and got up, heading slowly for the door. When she was gone, Annie turned her gaze back to Finnick.

"Mags has gone to bed, I assume." He told them. "You can both do the same... and we can have a bit of a talk in the morning. Or, if you want, we can talk now..."

Annie looked to Torsti who shrugged. "Let's get some sleep..." he suggested.

"Yeah, alright." She agreed.

"I'll see you all tomorrow..." The blond boy got swiftly to his feet, moving with practically feline grace that surprised her, and left the car. A few seconds later, Pansy said something similar and also quickly left.

"I hope he doesn't sleep with her..." Annie muttered when the door closed behind the escort.

"You and I both." Finnick replied. "... How's the emotional breakdown coming along?"

"I plan to continue it when I get back to my car." She said mildly, picking at the hem of her skirt.

"Look, Annie..." The tone of Finnick's voice had changed that much when he spoke that she looked quickly at him. "You will be ready."

"Against people who've trained their entire lives for this? I doubt that."

"Maybe you won't be able to match that boy from Two in a sword fight, but there are other ways to win."

"Not if he cuts my head off."

Finnick shook his head, looking at her. "Have you given up already? You're just going to die?"

"No." She murmured, looking steadily at him. "I don't want to die."

"Good." He leaned toward her, resting his elbows on his knees. "Because I have a plan to keep you alive."

She looked silently at him. He just watched her with those sea green eyes. "...what is it?" she eventually asked when he did nothing but look her over slowly.

"Districts One and Two always have an alliance." He said. She nodded. "Sometimes we can get in on that. Usually when we have our own Career tributes. This year we have Torsti..." She nodded again, not liking where this was going.

"I'm not, though. Anyone who saw that reaping will have worked that out."

"Yes and no..." He mused. "You're healthy. You look strong." He gestured vaguely at her. "You look as if you could have some training..."

"You want me to trick them into thinking I'm a Career to get in on an alliance?"

"Yeah. We'll have to get you a high enough score with the Gamemakers and be careful how we present you from now on... but I think we can do that."

"But how will that help me survive?" she asked "Eventually, they'll just kill me anyway."

"Yes." He nodded, "It's not a perfect solution. Forming an alliance with them should get you through the initial bloodbath and a significant portion of the games... You'll just have to keep the temperature of the water... monitor the situation... and get out before they turn on you."

"And then what?"

"Survive." He answered.

Annie nodded, thinking. Surviving the bloodbath at the start of the games would be hugely important as so many would-be contenders are often eliminated straight away. Being a part of the Career pack for however long would grant her protection of some degree that she wouldn't be able to achieve on her own. The alliance should hold until they'd eliminated a good portion of the rest of the tributes.

"There's no way to tell how you'll have to do that." He continued. "The important thing is to get out at the right time. Wait too long and you'll be dead. It's happened so many times before. People get too comfortable in the Career pack, too scared to break off on their own. They die."

"Your entire plan hinges on this."

"Pretty much."

"What makes you think I'll know when to go?" She asked, "What makes you think I won't get too scared to take off?"

"...I have a sense of you."

"Oh, really? You barely know me."

"I'm not saying I know you. I have a sense of you. I know you're intelligent. You're probably more intelligent than mostly anyone else going into the arena." He looked her over again, "Anyone who spends five minutes with you would know that."

Annie fiddled with her skirt, unsure how she felt about the fact that Finnick Odair was analysing her.

"Well, I have a sense of you too..." She replied, seeking to level the playing field just a little.

"And what have you sensed about me?" he asked, smirking a little.

"You're not as strong as you pretend to be." She replied, looking him in the eye.

"Oh, really? I could lift you over my shoulder with one hand..."

"Not what I'm talking about." She said, shaking her head. She could easily see the exact moment when he realised what she meant and he blinked before looking away.

"No..." He said. "I'm not as strong as I pretend to be. But that's what is required. Balls and Sass." He looked at her. "That'll get you through just about anything in The Capitol. Go in with balls and sass." He ran a hand through his bronze hair as she just watched. "You don't think you're nearly as strong as you are..." he told her, looking at her again. "And that shows. You need to change that. By tomorrow. You need to be acting as if you're a hundred times stronger than what you're capable of."

"And what am I capable of, do you think?"

"Winning."

Annie stared at him. Was he lying or just plain delusional. Perhaps neither...

"Okay," he said, getting to his feet. "Bedtime... We'll discuss more about what you need to do tomorrow."

Annie got to her feet as well. Looking at him, she nodded. "Finnick... Thank you." She said, meeting his eyes. "Thank you for... I don't even know. Not dismissing me, maybe?" She didn't know how to word what she wanted. He'd thought about what she needed to do. He'd come up with a plan of action for her in only a few hours when he didn't even know her. All she'd done was feel sorry for herself and cry when nobody was looking.

Finnick nodded slowly, then took one of her hands in his and lifted it. Kissing the back of her hand lightly, he smiled. "Get some sleep, Annie. Pansy will be pounding on your door in the morning for breakfast."

"Okay..." she breathed, turning and heading for her car. Slipping inside and closing the door behind her, she let out a sigh. Pulling her dress off, she tossed it onto a side table and crawled into bed in her underwear. Now that she had a plan to work out with Finnick she felt slightly less daunted by the prospect of her imminent death. There was a plan. There was something to be done. It would be worked on tomorrow. This satisfied her. Closing her eyes, she was pleased to feel sleep approaching. She'd been almost certain that she'd not be able to sleep a wink. As it washed slowly over her and her thoughts started to blur into the early stages of dreams, she tried to ignore the fact that the back of her hand seemed to be tingling.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thank you again to everyone who left a review or added this to their favs and alerts. It's been years since I've written for a large or active fandom, so the positive response has me a bit flaily.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Annie awoke with a violent jolt. Pounding on her door. "Pansy." She murmured, pushing the dark tangles back from her face.

"Annie!" The high pitched voice trilled, "Breakfast is about to be served!"

"I'm coming..." she called, throwing the covers back. She gave a sigh of relief when she heard Pansy move away from her door. Getting to her feet, Annie slowly went to the cupboard full of Capitol-provided clothing. Eyeing the contents quickly, she chose a flowing light blue dress and pulled it over her head. Tying her hair back in a ponytail, she gave herself a once-over in the mirror and headed to breakfast.

She had just started to open the door to the dining car when a hand moved past her and slid it closed again. She turned and found Finnick's sea green eyes only centimetres from her own. She stepped back in shock and hit the door. "Ow..."

"Sorry..."he said, straightening back up. "I just wanted to tell you not to mention what we talked about last night in front of Torsti."

"Oh..."

"At least not the bit where you take off from the group. He's going to know about the alliance bit... but after that, you'll need to avoid him, too."

Annie nodded, not liking the idea of Torsti hunting her down one bit.

"He doesn't get to know my bit of the plan. Got it." She nodded.

"Okay." Finnick looked her over. "You can go in, now." She nodded again and spun on her heel, almost slamming her face into the door before she could get it open. She ignored the snicker from Finnick and walked into the dining car and took a seat at the table.

"Good Morning." She said to Torsti and Pansy who were already seated at the table.

"Sleep well?" Torsti asked mildly.

"Actually, I did." She replied, smiling at the surprised look he gave her. "Just needed to pull myself together." She added, "Now, I'm good to go." Balls and sass. That's what Finnick had said. Now, while she didn't exactly have balls, she was sure that she could manage the desired effect. The way that Torsti was now looking at her suggested that it was indeed working. She gave him another smile and poured herself a glass of juice.

She looked up when Finnick wordlessly handed her a bread roll from District Four.

"Thanks..." She said, watching as he grabbed another for himself from the basket in the centre of the table.

"Sure."

"...So, that District Eleven bread...?" She let the question hang as he smiled and reached for another basket before handing her a small dark crescent shaped thing. She looked at it, turning it over in her hands. "Ah..." Pulling one of the tips off, she put into her mouth and chewed carefully. It was heavier and more coarse than the bread from home, but she rather liked the flavour. She nodded. "That is nice..."

He smiled approvingly at her until Torsti spoke up.

"Are you guys seriously just going to talk about bread?"

"You should try this." Annie said turning her eyes on Torsti quickly.

"No, thanks." He answered, "I'd rather talk about strategy."

"Right..." She let out a soft breath.

"So, I think the best thing we can do is ally ourselves with Districts One and Two." Torsti started. Annie watched him throw a look her way. "So Annie will have to look trained."

"What makes you think I'm not?" She asked.

"Are you?"

"...Not like you."

"Okay then." He looked her over. "You could be."

She blinked. "So could most people in Four."

"So that works for us." He put his spoon down. "An alliance would be best for both of us, wouldn't it?" She watched him look from Finnick to Mags who had just come in and taken a seat across from Annie.

"Yes." Finnick answered simply. Annie looked from him back to Torsti. He'd factored her into his plan. Why? He'd be trying to kill her soon enough. Why would he bother considering what course of action would be best for her? That just didn't make sense. "The best way to do that," Finnick added after a few moments "will be to present you as a pair. They should agree to take both of you together." His green eyes focused on Annie. "They're going to want Torsti, regardless." He said, "We need to attach you to that. Make you part of the deal." Here, he looked to Torsti, "If we can't manage that, it's your choice if you want to go with them alone..."

"Okay." Torsti nodded

Annie watched Mags chew on something for a few moments. "Mags," She asked, "Do you know the plan?" She watched the woman nod before continuing. "Do you think it's the best option?"

"Best way for you to survive..."

"Okay." Annie nodded, sure that Mags was referring to more than just their alliance with Districts One and Two. She just knew that her running off on her own later in the game was the main point there. The knowing smile that the woman then gave her only confirmed that thought.

"Are we through with this conversation for now?" Pansy put in, speaking for the first time since Annie had entered the car. "Good. So, this evening the Opening Ceremony takes place, but I'm sure that you know that. When we arrive, you get to meet your stylists and then I'll show you where you will be living for the duration of your stay."

Annie's heart hit her stomach. District Four tributes had a long history of appearing practically naked year after year.

"... You've gone that strange green colour you went yesterday when your name was called at the reaping." Finnick said, eyeing her. He leaned toward her, looking her over closely. "Breathe." He told her. She hadn't realised that she'd stopped. Taking a shaky breath, she looked at her plate. "What is it?"

"I..." She cleared her throat. "I just really don't want to be naked in front of the entire country..."

"Ah." He gave a simple nod.

"...Mm." Torsti let out a deep breath. "Do we have the same stylists as previous years?" he asked.

"Yep." Finnick replied. Torsti rolled his eyes.

"Well... if you are naked," Pansy put in, "And that is nothing to be ashamed of, mind you... at least you are both attractive. The audience will just love it... It may even get you more sponsors... isn't that right, Finnick?"

Finnick just grunted his response and Annie watched him tear a bread roll apart on his plate.

"You know, physical appearance isn't everything." She said flatly, looking at Pansy. Pansy blinked, looking as if she didn't quite understand. Annie sighed.

"It is important, though." Torsti put in. "Or, it can be, in this game."

"Well, forgive me for not thinking that playing with people's lives is a game."

"That's not what I meant."

Annie closed her eyes, rubbing her hands over her face. "I know. I'm sorry."

Mags said something that Annie didn't catch.

"Sorry?" Torsti asked, clearly not having heard her either.

"She said that we'll all be saying things that we don't mean over the next few days." Finnick explained, apparently having finished tearing his bread apart. Annie found herself wondering if he hadn't been imagining it to have Pansy's face.

"Well, let's just try not to do it on camera." Torsti replied.

"Good plan." Finnick murmured, getting to his feet. "You two should eat as much as you can. When you're short of food in the arena you'll need it." Annie looked at him. "Mags and I have some stuff to discuss..." He looked at Mags who got to her feet.

"I have things to attend to, also." Pansy said, hurrying to her feet and out of the car before anybody else could even move. Annie just watched the car door slide shut before Finnick opened it and held it for Mags before following her out.

"What just happened?" Torsti asked, his grey eyes full of confusion.

"Pansy keeps having a go at Finnick..."

"Over the whoring thing?"

Annie stared.

"You knew about that, right?"

"Rumours." She murmured.

"Oh."

"So, it's true... That they make him..."

"Mhm." Torsti nodded. "All the attractive victors... They must command a good price..."

Annie blinked, no knowing what to say. How awful. For somebody to have gone through The Hunger Games, come out the other side, and then be forced to submit to that kind of thing... There really was no escape. She couldn't do it.

"Why would Pansy..." She broke off. "What a bitch."

"Maybe she's jealous." Torsti shrugged, "Maybe he turned her down."

"It's horrible..." she murmured. "No way could I go through that..." She watched Torsti shrug again. "Could you?" she asked, "Could you do it...?"

"Yeah." He replied, "If I win, I bet they'll want me to..."

"I couldn't. Sleeping with random people just because they have enough money to think they can buy whatever, or whoever, they want..." She shook her head. "It's revolting. It isn't meant to be like that. It's meant to be special... mean something... with somebody you love..."

"Spoken like a true virgin." Torsti replied, looking at her. Annie felt her cheeks flush red. "You are, aren't you...?"

"So?"

He sighed. "Are you prepared for what may happen in the arena?"

She blinked. "What? What do you mean?"

"Rape, Annie. I'm talking about rape."

"Uh..." She shook her head, "That doesn't happen..."

"You think so? They throw people together to fight to the death. Killers. What else do you think they'll do to you?"

"I've never once seen that happen."

"So they don't broadcast it." He said, "Perhaps it wouldn't rate well with the audience..."

"No..." She shook her head, looking at him. "That can't..." She shook her head again, unable to think of anything to say. Instead she picked up another bread roll from District Four. Turning it over in her hands, she just looked at it.

"I didn't say it to upset you, Annie. I want you to be ready."

"Yeah." She murmured. Putting the bread down, she got to her feet. "I'm done eating." Without looking at Torsti again she left the dining car. Heading quickly for her car, she'd just gotten there when she spotted Finnick.

Grabbing him roughly by the front of his shirt she pulled him into her car and slammed the door shut behind her before turning to face him. The surprised look on his face almost pleased her.

"Annie..."

"Finnick."

"Are you trying out Balls and Sass?" he straightened his shirt where she'd scrunched it in her hand.

"Do people get raped in the arena?"

He looked quickly at her. "What?"

"You heard me."

"Well..."

"Do they? The truth."

She watched him look around and sit gently on the edge of her bed. She stepped forward and did the same, watching him. He smoothed his hand over the bedspread softly before looking at her again.

"Wouldn't you rather talk to Mags about this?"

"No. Tell me." She replied stiffly. "Do people get raped in the arena?"

He sighed. "Not often..."

"But it does happen?"

"Yes."

She flailed her hands. "What the...?"

"Look at the mental state they're forcing tributes into to go in there and kill one another. They seek power over one another... some, it twists. You remember Titus from District Six a few years back...? He started eating his kills..."

"And the Gamemakers put an end to it by orchestrating his death."

"Unofficially, yes." He replied, "But he's not the only one who became twisted by what he did and saw within the arena. So, yes. Sometimes...rarely... but, sometimes, people are raped."

"And they don't broadcast it because The Capitol people wouldn't like it?"

"Yes."

Annie traced a light blue thread in the bedspread with her finger.

"You've turned that green colour again, Annie." She looked up to meet Finnick's gaze which was focused intently upon her. "Why are you asking me about rape?"

"Torsti told me it happens and I wanted to know if it was true..."

"And he told you that, why?"

"He said he wanted me to be ready..."

"Ready to be raped?"

"No, because I'm... I've not..." She let out a soft breath, falling silent. She had no idea why it was a thousand times more difficult to admit she was a virgin to Finnick than it had been to Torsti. Looking intently at her light blue thread, she remained silent.

"Annie..."

"Mm." She didn't look up.

"Look at me."

Reluctantly, she lifted her gaze.

"It's rare." He told her. "One in a hundred tributes goes that way." She watched him look her over. "I'll teach you how to break someone's hold on you..."

She nodded. "Okay." Her gaze dropped back to the bedspread.

"Annie..." His fingers beneath her chin, lifting her face, forced Annie to look at him again. "Balls and Sass."

"Right." She nodded. He got up.

"You get some rest or something. We'll be arriving in the Capitol in a few hours."

"Okay." Annie nodded again and Finnick left the car.

* * *

Striding into the dining car, Finnick slammed the door shut and eyed Torsti silently.

"What?"

"Why did you scare Annie about being raped in the arena?"

"That wasn't my intention..."

"Then what was?"

"I just thought she should know."

"Why?"

"So she'd be ready."

"Nobody is ever ready to be raped!" Finnick snapped.

"No, but she was saying all this romantic mushy crap about what sex is meant to be like...and I realised that she's a virgin. So I asked her if she was prepared for what may happen in the arena."

"So you rubbed the prospect of rape in the virgin's face."

"No..."

Finnick ran his hands over his face. "Do you know how rare that is?" he asked, "It's not a common occurrence of every Games! She was already scared enough and now she has this to worry about."

"I just thought she should be warned."

"That's not your place! Not your decision to make! I'm her mentor, not you!"

"Would you have told her, then? Would you have even guessed she was a virgin?"

"After her reaction to the possibility of being naked for the Opening Ceremony, yeah. It was pretty damn obvious to me. I didn't feel the need to make a big deal out of it and embarrass her about it, though." He blinked, trying to read the way Torsti was looking at him. "What?"

"Why is it that you're biting my head off?"

"Because you scared the shit out of Annie!"

"She should be scared. She's going to die. And if she's lucky, she'll do it before she's raped."

Finnick just stared at Torsti. He must have been so preoccupied trying to think of a strategy for Annie that he hadn't properly taken a measure of the blond boy. He'd taken him at face value, when there was so much more. Torsti was far darker than Finnick had given him credit for. _Yes_, he thought, _perhaps Annie should be scared._

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks again to those who've shared their thoughts and enthusiasm over this story with me. It means heaps. It really does.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

The rest of the train ride passed quickly for Annie as she sat in her personal car on the bed and tried to compose herself. When they hit The Capitol she had to be cool, calm and collected. She couldn't go around showing everybody how certain she was that she was going to die a horrible death. If they even suspected that she was weak she would become a target. If that became the case she may not even survive the initial bloodbath. No, she had to appear as if she had everything together and was confident in herself and her abilities. Fake it. Pretend. Act.

When Pansy came to get her, she walked out of the car with a wide smile and her head held high. So far so good, but then the train hadn't even come to a stop yet. Annie watched out the window as The Capitol came into view and they flew past buildings that appeared to be getting larger with every passing second. Mags appeared next to her and Annie let out a soft sound.

"Wow..."

As the train came to a sudden stop, Mags told her that they would be taken straight to their prep teams and then meet their stylist. She nodded and readied herself.

Annie was rather pleased with how she had conducted herself from the train station to the point where she was lying naked on a table while three strangers worked on her. She'd been almost stoic. If should could keep this up, she'd be set. She would, however, much rather do it with her clothes on. She'd closed her eyes around the point where her last bit of clothing had been removed and the prep team had begun touching her and rubbing things into her skin. She had no intention of opening them again until somebody gave her a robe and told her that she could get dressed.

Before long, Annie's prep team told her that she was ready and they left her alone. She sat up, pulling the robe she'd been given tightly around her. Naked in a room full of strangers. Not how she wanted to spend another five minutes of her life. It was only a few moments before her stylist came in. Annie looked the tall woman up and down. She was a good foot taller than Annie herself with shoulder length silvery hair. She was very slim and had what looked like silver tattoos all over her skin. She was also very nearly naked herself, and Annie felt her heart sink.

"Hello, I'm Lena."

Annie nodded. "Annie..." she replied, trying to make her voice work properly.

"Yes, yes...District Four never disappoints, does it?" Lena said, moving around her. "Can you take the robe off, Annie? I need to see what I have to work with here?"

Annie swallowed thickly and dropped the robe, her eyes fixed on a point on the opposite wall.

"Good... Good..." Lena murmured, looking her over. "We're going to definitely make you memorable..."

Annie blinked, looking at her. "So, not naked then?" She asked, trying to hide her smirk. "Not naked like all the others will be?"

"I should say not." Lena replied, gesturing that she could pick the robe back up. "Not entirely."

* * *

Finnick moved among the group of tributes. Ridiculous costumes on all but a few of them. Where were his? Judging by the mentors standing with them, that was District Ten and then Nine. He moved further through the crowd. Seven and Six. Ah! There they were. He saw Torsti standing tall and looking rather confident in the tiny golden outfit they had him in. They'd managed to make his blond hair shine golden and even his skin looked more golden than before. Finnick was sure the second the chariot pulled out with him on it and the crowd saw him he'd have no trouble at all in finding sponsors for him.

As Torsti shifted, Finnick got a view of Annie. Moving closer, he looked at her. Her prep team had also made her skin look slightly golden, but her hair was still rich and dark. They'd made it more sleek however, and he just knew that if he ran his hands through it, it would feel like silk. Watching, he noticed that she was twisting a lock of hair around her finger again and again, and then he realised that the lock was changing from blue to green in the light. That was clearly meant to represent the ocean.

He stepped closer again and Annie must have sensed him because she turned around. The strange coloured piece of hair framed the right side of her face rather nicely, he decided looking at her. The makeup they'd used on her was also rather effective. Her sea green eyes, so like his own, stood out brightly in contrast to her dark hair.

"This is nice." He said, taking the green piece of hair between his fingers. _Yep, silk._

"I like it." She said. "Not so much the rest..."

Finnick looked down at the rest of her. Skimpy outfit. They'd kept the bluish green colour and put her in a tiny bikini type outfit, rather like what he'd seen was quickly becoming the fashion lately in The Capitol among certain circles. Over that, Annie had been draped in golden nets. One was wrapped around her waist to fall like a skirt, another had been wrapped thinly around the top piece of her outfit and knotted between her breasts. There was a third piece of netting that he was rather confused about as it went from her left shoulder to her elbow and then simply fell uselessly.

"They wrapped me in nets." She said flatly. As if to demonstrate, she lifted her left arm and flailed it a bit, flapping the net around. "What is this?"

"Wrapped in nets..." He murmured, looking at the net wrapped around her waist. Involuntarily, the image of a young teenage boy caught helplessly in a net as he drove his trident through his chest flashed before Finnick's eyes. He blinked. Looking up, he met Annie's eyes and the look on her face suggested that she knew exactly what he'd just been reminded of.

"I'm sorry..." She breathed. He shook his head before his eyes caught on the trident in Torsti's hand. "...It isn't real." Annie said softly. He looked back to her.

"Of course." He replied, reminding himself that there was no way that tributes would be given weapons here.

Why had they wrapped Annie in nets and given Torsti a trident? Was somebody having a go at him? Trying to evoke a reaction? Did they think they were making some kind of allusion to District Four's supposed pride over their last victory by illustrating the way he'd won? Was it simply coincidence?

Somebody walked past, calling out that they had five minutes before the doors opened and the Ceremony started. Finnick watched as Annie's arms wrapped around her own waist. He looked her over again. She looked like some kind of Ocean Goddess.

Lena appeared out of nowhere and began fiddling with Annie's hair, smoothing it down and arranging the green bit to fall in a certain way. Finnick just stepped out of the way and stayed there until Lena felt she was done and hurried away again.

* * *

"This is going to be humiliating." Annie murmured. "Everybody back home will see me dressed like this... Ugh. I can never walk down the street again." Not that she'd have the chance... She shrugged. "I guess worse things happen at sea."

Finnick gave a smile and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"If it helps..." he began, and then hesitated before continuing. "You look beautiful."

Annie blinked, just looking at him. Swallowing, she nodded. "Thank you..." The fact that somebody as gorgeous as Finnick thought that she was attractive did help. Feeling a bit more confident, she stepped up onto the chariot beside Torsti. "Oh, please don't let me fall off and be run over by District Five."

She saw Torsti smile. "Hold on here." He said, showing her where to put her hand. "Or, you could hold on to me if you like."

"Can I do both?" She murmured.

"You can do both."

"Okay." She tightened her hold on the chariot and then looked around. Finnick was gone.

"You're already the favourite, you know." Torsti commented. Annie looked up at him.

"What? Why?"

"It's easy to tell..." he replied. "On the train Finnick practically abused me for scaring you... and just now... Did you hear him tell me I was beautiful?" he flashed one of those perfect grins at her. "Well, maybe I'm just not his type."

"Neither am I." Annie scoffed.

"You think so?"

"Yeah... I'm willing to bet that his type is more... well, someone who will still be alive in a month..."

"Maybe."

"Besides, he just said it to make me feel better because I was about thirty seconds from running away and hiding forever."

"Oh, I know that." Torsti replied. "I wasn't saying that he wants to marry you. He wasn't lying, though."

Annie was so preoccupied by thinking about that that she missed the fact that the doors had opened and that Districts One, Two and Three had already exited through them. She nearly fell off the back of the chariot when their horses suddenly moved to follow. Torsti wrapped one of his big hands tightly around her elbow and kept her in place as they waved to the screaming crowds.

Annie had to admit that they looked good. Catching sight of herself and Torsti on one of the giant screens, she smiled. Nudging him, she indicated that he should look.

"Impressive..." he nodded

"We look like Ocean Gods..."

"Let's try to act like it then, shall we?"

Annie nodded and returned her attention to the crowd. She waved and even blew a few kisses the way she'd seen some tributes do every so often. Torsti wrapped an arm around her shoulders and raised his other hand, holding his trident, into the air. Annie was sure the screaming got louder.

When the doors closed behind them at the end and they were allowed to get off the chariot, Annie breathed a sigh of relief. She still had to maintain her act though, she reminded herself when she noticed that the tributes from other districts were taking the opportunity to size up the competition.

Raising her hand, she forced a smile and gave a friendly wave to the crazy-eyed girl from District Two. The girl just looked at her.

"That one doesn't look quite right in the head." Torsti said softly.

"Absolutely." Annie said through her wide smile.

"Nice, Four." Annie turned at the sound of a growly voice in her ear. It was the boy from District Seven, the one who had made her skin crawl with the feral look to his features that she had noticed at his reaping. He reminded her of a wild animal. The skin crawling effect apparently only intensified in person. She supposed the way he was looking her over had something to do with that, too. "Very nice." She dropped her forced smile.

"Okay, random guy I've never met before..."

"Aidan." He said, holding a hand out to her. Annie eyed it, not wanting to touch him. She supposed there was no way out of it, however.

"Annie." She replied, shaking his hand. When he didn't release her hand she looked at him. His pale blue eyes were looking her over again.

"I hope we can spend some time together, Annie." He said, meeting her eyes. "Both in and out of the arena."

She didn't. She watched as Aidan's eyes flicked to something over her shoulder and then back to her. "See you later." He said before walking away. Annie just stood there, wiping her hand on the net wrapped around her waist.

"I need a shower." She muttered.

"I can help with that." Finnick's voice said and she turned quickly to see him standing just behind her with Pansy.

"Oh, you're just going to love the Training Center!" Pansy told them. "You have a whole floor to yourselves."

Annie tuned her out and kept wiping her hand on her net. She didn't care if they had a whole floor to themselves; she just wanted a shower to herself. That Aidan kid gave her the creeps and she still couldn't shake the feeling.

"Creepy guy from District Seven..." Finnick said, falling into step beside her as they followed Pansy.

"Yep. He shook my hand and I feel... tainted." She replied.

"Hence the need for a shower..."

"And you're going to help with that..." She looked at him.

He grinned. "That's not what I meant..."

She just smiled back as they got into an elevator. Annie watched Pansy press the '4' button.

"Can... can tributes from other districts get onto our floor?" She asked.

"Why would they?" Pansy replied, looking at her as if she'd never heard a stranger question.

"Everything is monitored." Finnick answered softly, "They wouldn't get very far."

Annie nodded, exchanging a look with Torsti.

* * *

Author's Note:

*hugs to everybody who left a review or added this to alerts and favs*


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Annie loved the Capitol showers. She'd decided that within two minutes of being in one. She loved the feel of the bubbles all over her skin and the sweet aromas that both relaxed and soothed her. Fascinated, she pressed button after button knowing that she couldn't possibly try all the different options, but wanting to try as many as she could. She hadn't even gotten to combinations. She'd gotten about a third of the way through the buttons when she figured that she'd been in there long enough. Stepping out, she was more than pleased with the button that instantly both dried and parted her hair for her. That was such a time saver. "Endless convenience..." She murmured, moving to the cupboard to pick something to wear.

Most of what was in the cupboard was green. Her favourite colour. Had they known that, or was it simply because they associated green with District Four? Either way, she wasn't complaining. Pulling a simple green dress over her head she didn't bother with shoes as she left her room and headed to the dining room where dinner was meant to be served. Entering the room, she found Torsti, Finnick, Mags and Pansy all already sitting at the table.

"Enjoy your shower?" Finnick asked mildly as she took an empty seat.

"Very much."

"You pressed every button, didn't you?" He asked, handing her a District Four roll.

"I did not." She replied simply, before adding under her breath. "I didn't have time..."

Apparently he heard her because he let out a laugh. Annie looked at him in surprise. His laugh was a pleasant sound, but it sounded so out of place here. She felt as if at any moment somebody was going to burst in and punish them. Putting a piece of the roll in her mouth, she instantly thought of home. Home. Finnick's laugh wouldn't be out of place there. She'd bet it would suit the beach perfectly. She could almost imagine it carrying across a still and glassy ocean of an evening just as the sun set behind the water. She closed her eyes. She could almost feel the breeze, hear the waves lapping gently against the dock. A strange sense of longing tugged at her and she opened her eyes, pushing it away. She would never see the ocean again.

She noticed sea green eyes watching her closely. Those eyes held the ocean, even here. She wondered if her own did. Blinking quickly, she looked down. Pulling apart the roll in her hands she dipped pieces of it into the creamy orange soup somebody had put in front of her. Sitting between Finnick and Mags she couldn't guess which one it had been. Looking across the table at Torsti, he nodded his head toward Mags.

"Thank you..." Annie turned her head toward the woman. Mags just nodded, giving her a smile.

"So!" Pansy said loudly. "Tomorrow you two will go down to the training centre with the other tributes and have some time to learn some new skills or practice those you already have... you also get to meet the others properly... see what they're about."

Annie was pretty sure that she knew what some of them were about already.

"We need to talk about your skills." Mags mumbled. Annie glanced at her and then at Torsti.

"Well, you'd be better off asking me what I can't do." Torsti grinned, sending a wink toward Pansy.

"You'd be better off saving your cocky show for the others." Finnick replied drolly.

"Sorry." Torsti answered, his voice lower than usual. "I'll try to be more of a girl to make myself agreeable to you, shall I?"

Annie nearly dropped her bit of bread. "Hey!" She said.

"What?" Finnick's voice had become a snarl and Annie turned slowly in her chair to look at him.

"Well, it seems to work better for you." Torsti continued.

"Torsti..." Annie began.

"Maybe if I cry a bit..."

Everybody jumped when Mags slammed her hand down on the table and four pairs of eyes turned her way. "Eat!" The woman said sharply. Annie hastily put the piece of bread she was holding into her mouth.

"Well, this is quite enough excitement for me for one day." Pansy said, getting to her feet. "I think I need some sleep. Goodnight." With that, she turned and hurried away.

"Annie." Mags said gently. "Your skills."

"I... I don't know." Annie murmured, swirling a piece of bread around in her soup. "I was never put through training..."

"What do you do in your spare time?" Finnick asked her.

"I dance." She replied lightly. She heard Torsti sigh and she shot him a look.

"That's not bad." Finnick told her and she turned her eyes on him. "It means you can move. It means you're fit. It means you're light on your feet and graceful. These are all things that help someone in the arena."

Annie smiled softly. She'd not considered that.

"District related." Mags said, looking at her. "Can you swim?"

"Yes."

"Good." The woman then looked to Torsti who nodded silently. "Can you fish?" Annie and Torsti both nodded. "What else?"

"I'm good with weaving nets..." Annie said, "and I'm okay with setting traps..."

"I can do traps." Torsti nodded "Not so good with the weaving nets... too fiddly."

Annie's eyes went to Finnick as she expected some comment about finding something Torsti couldn't do. It didn't come, though. He was just nodding, listening silently. "Knots?"

"Proficient." Annie answered. Torsti nodded in agreement.

"I'll test you later..." he added. "What kind of training did you have, Torsti?"

"Sword, spear, bow..." he shrugged. "A bit of everything..."

"You're best with a sword."

"Yes."

Annie swirled the last of her bread in the soup. Being able to weave a net in no way compared to being able to wield a sword. Although...

Annie's eyes went back to Finnick. Wasn't that how he'd won his games? He'd made a net in which he trapped the other tributes and then killed them with his trident. Nets were useful. She didn't know if she would be able to stab people she trapped, but it was a skill she possessed that she could use.

As Torsti continued to talk about the kind of training he'd had and for how long, Annie began to feel slightly sick. She would stand no chance against Torsti, let alone the tributes from Districts One and Two where they trained their kids harder and for longer from an earlier age. She hadn't even seen them in action and she knew they'd be brilliant. Even if she had been put through training there was no guarantee she'd do any better. She tried to remind herself that Patricia had had years of training. She had been good at it too, but even she'd only lasted a week in the arena.

After they'd eaten, Annie went gratefully to her room and climbed into bed. She was completely exhausted. It seemed like an eternity had passed since she'd been woken by Pansy pounding on her door that morning. She hadn't even had time to consider what she'd be facing the next morning before sleep pulled her under.

* * *

Finnick sat on the soft couch in front of the large screen in the sitting room. He could feel Mags' eyes on him but he didn't look up.

"You've chosen the girl, then."

He looked up then, meeting her eyes. "I suppose so."

"I'll do the boy."

Finnick let out a sigh. "Okay."

"You and he don't mix."

"I know." He ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know what it is, but I just... don't like him."

Mags nodded. "I see that."

"He hasn't even done anything... He's just so... and Annie is so..."

If he'd been talking to anyone but Mags, he was sure he would have confused them. Mags simply nodded, following what he was trying to articulate.

"She could win, you know." He looked at Mags, wanting to see her agree with him. "I mean... I know... I know that she probably won't..." he blinked slowly. "But she could."

"Anybody could." Mags replied, "Most won't."

"I know."

"You need to remember that when they go in, Finnick." She raised her hand to his cheek affectionately. "You need to accept that they're probably not coming back. That she's probably going to die..."

"I know." He murmured, looking at her. Mags stroked his cheek again before lowering her hand. "Even though she's mine now and you're going to do Torsti... You'll still help me with her, won't you?" He hadn't been doing this nearly long enough to be as good at it as Mags was. She had a way of knowing exactly what somebody needed and exactly when to send it. Finnick was good at dealing with the sponsors and getting their money out of them. Mags was the genius behind the rest.

"Of course." She said softly.

"Thank you." He sighed. "I should have let one of the others mentor this year."

"And how many of them would have looked at Annie and thought she had a chance?" Mags asked simply. "She would have been dismissed." Finnick nodded, knowing that she was right.

"Okay." He stood up. "I think I'll get some sleep." He bent to kiss her cheek and then headed for his own room.

Stripping off, he stepped into the shower. He needed to figure out just what it was about Torsti that got under his skin. He'd realised that he'd not judged him properly on the train, but it was more than that. He needed to sort it out before he sent Annie into the arena with him. If she went in trusting him and got a knife in the back for it... He closed his eyes, dipping his head under the hot stream of water.

She was probably going to die. He had to get used to thinking about it.

Bracing a hand against the cool tiles, he let the hot water run down the back of his neck, relaxing him.

He had to give her the best chance possible, wasn't that his job? He looked to the ceiling. His job was to be reminded every year that just because he'd survived the arena didn't mean that The Capitol couldn't keep killing kids from his District and every other District. He was only nineteen now. Just older than Annie and Torsti this year. What about in twenty years when he had kids of his own? They'd be entered into the reaping bowls along with everyone else and the amount of times that a victor's kid was pulled out suggested that the odds weren't exactly in their favour.

Scrubbing hot water over his face, Finnick tried to push it from his mind. Annie was his concern now. After the Opening Ceremony, she and Torsti had had a few preliminary sponsors. Torsti a few more than Annie, but she'd not been overlooked, which proved promising. If they got her a good score from the Gamemakers, she'd get more... then, if her interview went well she may pull a few more. Once the bloodbath at the cornucopia was over and if she was still alive, the sponsors that always hang back before committing may even come forward then.

Annie was a good looking girl, and coming from District Four people would assume that she was in with a good chance. It could have been a lot harder to find sponsors for her than it would be.

Rinsing himself off, Finnick stepped out of the shower. Grabbing a towel from the rack, he ignored all the buttons that would dry him off, oil him down, whatever. Wrapping the towel around his waist he headed for the large comfortable bed. Getting rid of most of the water, he stretched out, tossed the towel to the floor and crawled under the sheets. Unable to hold back a small moan at how soft and comfortable his world had just become, he stretched out again, enjoying the feel of the silky sheets against his fresh skin.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow he'd sort Annie out and make sure that she presented herself in the way that would make the tributes from Districts One and Two want her in their alliance. He'd help her attract all the sponsors she could. He'd make sure that she knew what she was capable of. Everything. Tomorrow, he would do everything.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks again to those people who've shared their excitement or opinions on this story with me.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Finnick awoke at six the next morning. Getting up, he took the towel he'd dumped on the floor back to the bathroom and hung it on the rack. Heading back into the room he pulled clothes from the cupboard and got dressed. Running a hand carelessly through his hair when he looked in the mirror, he then headed out to the dining room. Finding Pansy already sitting at the table he wondered, not for the first time, how early she had to get out of bed to get all of her hair and makeup done to be out here before anybody else.

Sinking into a chair, he poured himself some juice and sipped it slowly.

"You're up early." She said, looking at him. "Have somewhere to be?" The way her eyes moved over him told Finnick exactly what she was asking.

He snarled. Pansy looked back to her plate.

"Why are you up this early, then?"

"Why are you?" He muttered.

"I have things to organise."

"I have a girl to prepare."

She looked at him then. "Divided them up at last, then?"

"Mmm."

"Well, that's probably for the best." She sipped her coffee, and then got to her feet. "If you need to work with her before they head down to training, then I should get them up."

Finnick concentrated on buttering a roll. It was only a few minutes before Pansy returned, followed by Mags. When Annie came in a few minutes later with Torsti following, Finnick frowned, looking at him. He didn't at all like the way the blond boy was looking her over as she walked ahead of him.

"I didn't think training was until ten." Annie said, sitting at the table.

"I need to go over some things with you beforehand." Finnick told her, handing her some District Four bread.

"Thanks. Okay... things about what?"

"How you're to conduct yourself in front of the others, what stations to focus on down there..." he sipped his juice. "A plan for the day."

"Sounds good." He watched her break the bread in half and begin tearing pieces off as she had the night before. After she chewed and swallowed a bit she looked up again. "So we're friendly toward them?"

"Toward Districts One and Two?" Torsti asked

"What if they don't want me?" Annie asked, "Shouldn't I have others I could ally with?"

He nodded. "But be careful how you do that. If they see you getting all chummy with, say, District Six then that alone could put them off you." He watched her chew thoughtfully.

"Okay." She agreed.

"So, try to stick to stations where you're good at something. Show off a bit if you can... You don't want to go showing everybody that you can't use a sword or anything like that. It could also be a good idea to try and learn some new survival skills..." Annie nodded, her green eyes watching him intently. His eye caught on the green piece of hair framing her face and he gestured at it. "Are you keeping that?"

"Oh..." She caught it between two fingers and looked at it. "I think so. I thought it might be a way to make me stand out. Be recognisable to the sponsors..." Her eyes returned to his. "Is it?"

He nodded. "Yeah. It suits you. Matches your eyes."

She raised an eyebrow. "Yours too."

"Okay, well... as fascinating as this is..." Torsti cut in. "It's hardly relevant to ...well, anything."

Annie looked quickly back to her plate, a faint blush making its way across her cheeks. Finnick turned his eyes on Torsti coldly. Yep. He really didn't like the guy.

"Thank you." Finnick turned his head at Annie's voice and watched a blonde Avox girl refill her cup for her. The girl nodded and he watched confusion cross Annie's features. He resisted a sigh. Every year they had to explain who these people were to the tributes, and every year watch the horror reflected back at them.

He blinked when the Avox girl held a small piece of paper out to him. Taking it, he murmured his thanks, his heart sinking as he unfolded it. He knew what it was.

* * *

Annie looked from the blonde girl who had refilled her cup to Finnick as he looked at the paper he'd been given. She watched as his free hand clenched into a fist upon the table. She watched as he looked up at the clock on the wall and then began swearing under his breath. She jumped when he slapped his hand down on the table.

"Are you okay?" She asked gently. The pain in his eyes when he looked at her just about knocked the breath from her lungs. They just looked at one another for a few moments before he got to his feet. She watched silently as he slipped the piece of paper into his pocket. Running a hand through his hair, he looked at her again.

"I'm sorry." He said, "I have to go... I'm sorry..." he stepped away from the table, glancing at the clock again. "Just... remember what I said..." Annie nodded, confused. "Mags..." Finnick looked to the women on his left.

"I'll talk to her." Mags nodded, watching him sadly.

"Thank you." Finnick ran a hand through his hair once more. He looked at Annie again as he backed away from the table. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine..." She said softly, watching as he turned and hurried out the door.

"Well," Pansy said crisply as the door closed after him. "He has always been in rather high demand..."

Annie wanted to throw the pot of coffee over the woman.

They passed the rest of breakfast in relative silence and then Mags took Torsti and Annie into the sitting room to talk to them. At first she informed them that they would be mentored separately, and that Finnick would see to Annie while she would look after Torsti's needs. She then basically just went through what Finnick had said earlier, giving more detail about the kinds of work stations they would find and what kinds of skills they could learn. They then had time to head back to their rooms before they had to be at the elevators at ten.

As Annie reached her room and opened the door to head inside, Torsti stopped to face her. "Believe me now?" he asked.

"About what?" She murmured.

"That you're the favourite."

"How do you figure that?" she replied, "You got the mentor who will actually be here to make sure you have medicine or anything else you need when you need it. If I'm dying in the arena and Finnick is out doing... whatever... then I stand no chance."

"Aw, come on." He smiled, "I'm sure they'll restrict his whoring while he has a job to do."

Annie just blinked at him. "You say some nasty shit, you know."

He smiled again. "Just getting into character." He told her. "You might want to as well."

"Yeah. I'll see you at ten." She replied, walking into her room and closing the door. Sitting on her bed, she ran her hands through her hair. She still had two hours to kill before they had to go down to training. Eyeing the door to the bathroom, she smiled. Perhaps she'd test the rest of those buttons.

Just before ten, Annie got dressed into something she figured would be suitable for training and then headed to meet Torsti at the elevator. About half the tributes were there when they arrived, and as somebody pinned a cloth square with the number 4 on her back, Annie tried to do a mental check of who was present. Aidan was giving her a small wave which she pretended not to notice as she scanned the room. The boy and girl from District Six were standing close together, looking scared out of their minds. The small boy from District Eight was looking around with unashamed awe. Two more tributes she couldn't place were standing nearby. The pair from District One seemed to be eyeing everybody just as she was and commenting to one another behind their hands.

The elevator doors opened and the tributes from District Two emerged. The girl with the crazy eyes gave Annie an imitation of the wave she'd given her the night before. Annie returned it. Torsti looked down at her.

"Making friends?" he asked.

"Let's hope." She replied quietly.

After a few minutes, everybody was present and a tall athletic woman called them in closer.

"I'm Atala," she said loudly. "I'm the training coordinator. If you have any questions about anything, you can ask an expert at any of the stations or myself."

Annie tuned out to most of the spiel after the essential things. They would be free to move from station to station et cetera. Her eyes went back to the other tributes. Aidan was still watching her, and she still pretended not to see him. Behind him, she saw the knot tying station.

Show off, Finnick had said. She could do that with knots.

When Atala released them, Torsti looked down at her again. "We're a package deal... so... let's stick together. What first?"

"Let's show off." She said, heading for the knot tying station. Torsti followed her and smiled as she introduced them to the knot expert. After a few minutes Annie wasn't sure that the term 'expert' was appropriate for the man. Neither she nor Torsti considered themselves experts at knot tying but they each knew several knots that this man had never seen. She watched as Torsti slowly explained one to him, untying his own example and doing it again more slowly so that he could follow. When she grew bored, she picked up a thicker length of rope and tied a noose. Torsti looked at her and she slipped it over her head, pretending to hang herself.

"Might just save myself some trouble, hey?"

He gave her a look that one might give a small child when they were misbehaving.

"Hey, Four!"

Annie and Torsti both turned to see the boy from District Two waving them over. She exchanged a glance with Torsti, and then she'd turned, giving the knot 'expert' her noose before following Torsti over to the boy.

"I'm Jarek." He said, then gestured at his district partner, the girl that Annie had waved at with the crazy eyes. "This is Inciness."

"Hi." The girl said.

"Hi... I'm Annie."

The girl nodded and looked to Torsti who then introduced himself. As the pair from District One approached, Jarek pointed at each of them. "I guess you haven't met Maverick and Lumina yet?"

"No." Torsti said, smiling.

"Hey, I really liked the costumes you two had last night." Lumina said, looking at them.

"Oh, thanks." Annie replied, "I was scared we were going to be naked..."

"Yeah, since Odair won most of us have been..." Torsti put in.

"It's not him, it's the stylists..." Annie said, looking at him.

"Because of him." Torsti answered. Annie sighed.

"Well, working with materials like that, who doesn't want to see the goods?" Lumina put in, smiling at Annie. Annie smiled back.

"So," Jarek said, "I noticed you two tying knots..."

"Oh..." Annie nodded.

"Yeah," He continued, "It looked like you were teaching that guy a thing or two."

"Or five." She replied. Jarek smiled at them.

"How about we train with you guys for a bit?" Inciness suggested. Annie nodded.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"What were you going to do next? Swords... or...?"

"Well, I was actually thinking of learning something new..." Annie replied, then looked at Torsti, "But you boys can go ahead and play with your swords if you must..."

"I think I must." Torsti said, smiling and looking at the others, "Boys?"

"I must, too." Maverick agreed, nodding.

"Yeah..." Jarek said slowly, "Let the girls go and learn something new..."

"Excellent!" Lumina said, looking around."What could we do?"

"Why don't we watch the boys for a second?" Inciness said softly."See if we can't tell who is the best..."

Annie followed them over to the corner of the room where all the most dangerous weapons were and stood to the side while the boys all tried to outdo one another. Her eye caught on the table she was standing next to and she slowly traced her finger along a throwing knife.

Blonde hair filled her memory. Patricia. Tari's older sister who had trained for the games and volunteered a few years ago had been like an older sister to Annie, too. She remembered how sometimes when she'd gone to Tari's house to see her friend, Patricia had taken them both outside to show them something new she had learned. As they'd gotten older, she'd had the girls try their hand at some things too. Annie had been quite good at throwing knives, and she'd become even better with Patricia's guidance. She hadn't thrown one since Patricia had died in the arena.

Picking the knife up, Annie wondered if she was still good. Lining herself up with one of the targets, she adjusted her hold on the knife and then let fly. The blade embedded itself in the target. She tilted her head. Her aim was slightly off as it had landed left of centre, but she was surprised that she'd struck it at all.

Trying to wipe the surprise off her face, she turned back to the others. Inciness was looking at her. "The weighting in these is not what I'm used to using..." Annie said. The girl with the crazy eyes nodded.

"Yeah. My first try with them was disappointing, too."

Annie pretended not to hear the insult in that comment and just nodded, looking back to what the boys were doing. If she could still throw, then she had something interesting to work with to impress the gamemakers and get herself a decent score. She'd have to let Finnick know when he returned.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks for the love, guys!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight **

Annie was sitting on her bed after dinner. She'd showered again, this time managing to try a few combinations of button pressing with impressive results. She'd washed away the day's training session and was sitting and waiting for Finnick to return. Turning to look around the room she noticed buttons by the windows. Getting up, she headed over to start pressing them. With a gasp she discovered that the windows would zoom in and out of different parts of the city depending on what buttons she pressed. She pressed buttons until it appeared that her window looked out over a large garden glittering with gentle lights through the trees, and then headed back to the bed. Sitting lightly, she swung her feet back and forth.

She'd just let out a small huff and considered going to bed when there was a light knock on her door. Sitting up straight, she called for them to come in. Finnick's head poked around the door. She stood up, smiling.

"Hey Annie..." His voice came out in a low seductive purr. "Mags said that you had something to show me." She watched his eyes look her over. "I can't wait to see what it is..."

Annie stared, the smile falling from her face.

He stopped. "Sorry..." he murmured, his voice normal again. He ran a hand through his hair. "Sometimes it's hard to turn it off."

"I suppose you've been out turning people on all day..." The instant that the words were out of her mouth, Annie regretted them. The look on his face made her want to cry. "Finnick, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..." She took several steps forward and hugged him. "I don't know why I said that. I've been so defensive since I've been here."

"It's fine." He murmured.

"No... I'm already turning into something I don't want to be."

"Do you want to be alive?"

"Yes."

He pulled back enough to look at her. "Then stay defensive."

"I didn't mean what I said..." She told him, her eyes locked on his.

"I know." He replied. She let him go and he tucked the green piece of her hair behind her ear. "So, what is it that you need to show me?"

"Sit on the bed..." She waved a hand at the bed as she headed across the room. Finnick did as he was told.

When Annie had come back from training and found that Finnick had not yet returned, she'd gone to Mags. She'd asked the woman if there was a way she could get a target and some throwing knives to show her mentor what she could do. Mags had told her that she would do what she could, but she wasn't sure if she could get them. Not an hour later they had been delivered to Annie's room. She'd put the target up on the wall by the bathroom door, and now stood facing it, holding several knives.

"...Annie."

"Shh." She replied, flicking a glance at him, before she threw three knives in quick succession at the target. She smiled when all three stuck, even though she was still a little left of centre.

She turned then to Finnick who was staring at the target. She grinned. "Well?"

His sea green eyes turned on her and he got to his feet, looking her up and down again. She watched as he approached the target, looking closely at it. She followed him. She squeaked when he spun back around, wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground, laughing.

"Why didn't you say that you could do that?" he asked.

She braced a hand against his shoulder, looking down at him. "I didn't know that I still could..."

He set her on her feet again and looked at her. "What do you mean?"

Annie let out a soft breath and moved to sit on the bed. The bed dipped as Finnick sat beside her. "I used to know this girl." She said softly, "She was my best friend's older sister, but she was like my sister too. Patricia..." Annie traced a pattern atop the bedspread with her finger. "She had proper training... she could do anything. She used to teach Tari and I things that she learned. Even though Tari and I weren't going to be trained, she thought that some things would be useful if we ever had to defend ourselves... So sometimes she would take us out the back of their house and show us how to do some things. I was good at the knives... so, she gave me tips and helped me practice sometimes." She traced her pattern again. "She volunteered at the reaping a few years back. She died."

"I remember Patricia." Finnick told her, and Annie looked up quickly. "That was the year after I won. My first year as a mentor... I was fifteen and she was seventeen..." He let out a breath. "She was nice..."

"She was."

"I... I always kind of felt as if it were my fault..." He said softly. Annie frowned and he continued. "I didn't really know what I was doing... and... she died."

"It wasn't your fault." She replied. "It was the pair from District Two who thought it would be funny to drown the girl from the Fishing District." He nodded and Annie felt her eyes fill with tears. She quickly looked down at the bedspread again. "I haven't touched a throwing knife since she died." She murmured.

Finnick touched her arm lightly. "Well, she may have given you exactly what you need..."

"To impress the gamemakers?"

"Yes, and in the arena..."

Annie blinked until the tears were gone. "Okay."

"So," he smiled when she looked at him. "You can throw."

"With reasonable accuracy." She added. She then frowned. "But I keep throwing off centre... I think the weight in the Capitol blades is different to what I'm used to... or, I'm just not good anymore..."

"Probably the weight and you're out of practice..." Finnick replied, rubbing her arm gently. She watched his hand silently for a few moments.

"You... you were going to teach me to break somebody's hold on me..." She said.

"Yeah..." his hand slid down her arm to her own hand as he got to his feet and pulled her up after himself.

Readying herself, Annie looked at him expectantly. He closed his fingers around her wrist.

"How would you get out of this?" He asked. "Someone's grabbed you by the wrist; what would you do?"

Annie tried to pull her wrist free. Finnick held on. She tugged again but he held tighter.

"I don't know... Kick them in the balls?"

He gave a breathy laugh. "That might only make them angry..."

"And it could be a girl..."

"Right. So, what would you do?"

She tugged again. "I don't know..." She looked at him.

"Turn your wrist like this..." he slowly moved it for her, "In the direction of their thumb. It's the weakest part of the hand as it acts as a natural hinge... it's easier to break their hold."

"Oh..."

"Here, try." He took hold of her wrist again. Annie twisted it. "Push at an angle that will bend my thumb back..."

She did so and as his hand opened slightly she was able to pull free. She looked at him, pleased.

"Good..." He smiled. "Okay, let me show you how to take them down." He took her left wrist again. "Right, so when someone has you like this, turn you arm so that you're looking at your own palm... up toward your face..." Annie did so. "Now, bend your fingers toward yourself so that you can see the meaty base of my hand... Now, use your free hand to grab the base of mine... make sure to reach under your other arm to do that...You can now pull your wrist free..." She did so. "Okay, grab the other bit of my hand, Yeah, right over my fingers...and then step back with your left foot, and turn yourself back 180 degrees, bringing the hand down." Annie did it quickly and gasped when Finnick ended up on his back at her feet. "Good..." he said, smiling up at her. "Now you want to pull their arm straight, don't let them have it back..."

She pulled his arm straight into a lock.

"Now, if you twist that, you'll break my wrist."

Annie looked at him. "That easily...?"

"That easily."

She let his arm go. He got up. "Do you want to try that one again?"

"Okay..." She nodded and he grabbed her wrist. She quickly turned her palm toward her face, bent her fingers and reached under her own arm to grab the base of his hand with her free one. She pulled her wrist free and then grabbed the other side of his hand and turned quickly back, bringing his hand down. Once again, Finnick ended up on his back at her feet. This time she kept his arm straight. "So... You can't move now?" She asked.

"Nope." He said tightly. "Bet you didn't think it'd be this easy to get me on my back..." She couldn't help a smile.

"Well, you are completely at my mercy..." She replied. She let him go a moment later. "Good thing that I'm nice..."

He got to his feet. Annie grinned at him and then squeaked when he suddenly spun her around, wrapping his arm around her waist from behind and pulling her tightly against himself. "Now what would you do?" he breathed in her ear. She closed her eyes, unable to help leaning back against him.

"I don't know..." She murmured.

"Think." He whispered. "Someone has grabbed you from behind. You don't know what they're going to do to you. How do you get away?"

Annie rested her head back against his shoulder. "I'd headbutt them... but you're too tall..."

"Yes." He said simply. "One of the first things you should do is drop your head back into their face or nose..."

"Unless they're too tall... like you... which, most of them will be..."

"Exactly, so what else...?"

She tried to loosen his grip with her hands but couldn't shift him. His arm tightened around her waist, pulling her in even more tightly against himself. "What are you going to do?" He asked. Her breath caught in her throat and she shook her head.

"I don't know..."

"Breathe. Come on... I could have done anything to you by now..." He ran his free hand up the outside of her left leg to emphasis his point. Annie let out a breath.

"Uhm..." She stepped on his foot.

"Good." He nodded against her hair. "You can really stomp on his feet... Really dig your heel in. Put all your weight behind it. You can also scrape your shoe down his shin as you go to stomp on his foot. The shin has really thin skin and is very easy to break."

"Okay..." She shook her head. "I don't know what else."

"The strongest part of your body is your elbow." He told her. "Use it."

Annie frowned and tried to twist to elbow him.

"Higher." He told her. She blinked and leaned her upper body forward a bit to give her space to twist around and line her elbow up with his face.

"Ah..." she murmured. He nodded again.

"That's it." He said. "Now, it can't just be one blow. It has to be several. From both sides if you can. You keep hitting until you're free. Don't stop."

"Okay."

"So..." he let her go for a moment, and then wrapped both arms around her waist, holding her own arms by her side. "You can't elbow him... what will you do?"

"The head if I can... I can still stamp on his feet..."

"Yes... What else?"

She thought for a moment and then shifted her hip to the side. "Rip his balls off..." She felt Finnick give a silent laugh.

"Precisely." He said, "Move like you did to get a clear shot at the groin. Then grab, twist and pull. If you can't get that, then you can still pinch his inner thigh. Hard. If you do it hard enough you can actually pull muscle away from the bone."

Annie shuddered. Finnick loosened his hold somewhat, but didn't let go.

"Do you want to have a go at getting free?" He asked.

"I don't want to hurt you..." She replied, "I know what to do..."

"Alright..." He still didn't let her go. Annie leaned against him again. "Mags said that Districts One and Two showed an interest."

"They saw us showing off with knots..."

"Ahh."

"The boy from District Two, Jarek, called us over."

"How do they seem?"

"Jarek and Inciness, the girl, seem... unstable." She was silent for a moment before adding "I think I like the girl from One, Lumina."

"Try not to."

She closed her eyes. "I know."

"You trained with them?"

"The boys played with swords..." She answered, "I avoided that... so, I got the girls learning survival skills with me."

"Good move." He murmured.

"Should I use the knives tomorrow?"

"No..." He was silent for a moment, "Keep learning survival skills... We're going to play up your mystery a bit."

"You want me to seem mysterious?"

"It can't help to have them underestimating you a little..."

"What if they think I'm too weak for their alliance?"

"If they invited you over to train with them they already think you're worthy of their attention."

"I see..."

"It's nearly two in the morning," he said letting her go. "You should get some rest. You'll need it."

She turned to face him. He looked tired. She didn't think she could blame him. "Will... will you be here tomorrow, or...?"

"I don't know..." he answered softly.

She had to ask. "When I'm in the arena... Will you... be... out?"

He tucked the green piece of hair behind her ear. "I'll have to talk to sponsors and see to certain things... but I'll be there every second that I can." He told her. "When I'm not, Mags will be."

"But if she's focusing on Torsti..."

He shook his head. "She promised me that she'd help me. She wouldn't just sacrifice you. She'll do everything in her power to help you. That's who she is."

Annie nodded. "She does seem wonderful."

"She is."

She resisted a yawn. "Okay." She murmured, "Bedtime."

"Alright, I'll see you at breakfast." He replied. She nodded again, watching him. He simply stood there, looking at her silently for a moment before turning on his heel and heading quickly for the door. Annie watched the door close after him, and then turned and climbed into bed.

* * *

Finnick leaned against the wall outside Annie's room for a few moments. What the hell was going on with him? He knew that he liked the girl. She was sweet and kind. He wanted to take her home. He wanted her to win. He wanted to take her back to her parents and have her be okay.

He hadn't been able to help himself, however. He hadn't meant to touch her more than was absolutely necessary. It was the way she'd leaned into him. She'd trusted him. He'd felt her relax against him and it had made him not want to let her go. He would have stood there with his arms around her all night if he'd been able to.

Swearing at himself under his breath, he pushed away from the wall. What was he thinking? The girl was going to her death in a few days. He was meant to be her mentor. He was meant to be helping her. He wasn't meant to be standing in her room at two in the morning feeling her up. Striding up the corridor toward his own room, he ran a hand through his hair. He would have to watch himself from now on. He would behave more suitably and do his best to mentor her more appropriately.

* * *

Author's Note:

Ladies, those self defence moves are real. If I've written it clearly enough to make sense to you, take note and use them.

Thanks for the continued appreciation and reviews, guys!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Annie headed down to training the next morning feeling more confident. "Are we sticking with Districts One and Two again today?" Torsti asked her. "Mags didn't say."

"I guess it's up to us, then." She replied. "It could be a good idea. It could also be a good idea to try and get to know what some of the others are capable of."

"They won't be much of a threat..." he replied, "They're half starved."

"So then they'll be used to not having dinner in front of them every night."

"Mmm..."

Annie watched him think about that for a moment and then the elevator opened up to the large gymnasium. "Annie! We were just discussing what we're going to focus on today!" Lumina linked her arm through Annie's the moment she'd stepped out of the elevator. "Inciness wants to use the weapons... but I think that I want to keep doing survival stuff. It's interesting. And, well, my whole life I've been using weapons... I'm not going to improve in two days... But I don't know much about the other stuff..."

"It's not to improve." Inciness said, her tone low. "It's for the benefit of the others." She gestured at the other tributes.

"They know we're good anyway." Lumina replied, "I don't want to waste my time doing the same things I've done every day of my life."

"Then what do you want to do?" Inciness sighed.

"Do you guys know how to build shelter?" Annie asked.

Lumina shook her head. "Ohh, we should do that."

"That sounds like a waste of time." Inciness muttered. "You guys do that. I'm going to stay with the others."

"It won't be a waste of time if we don't have shelter and it's raining acid or something." Lumina retorted. "Do it with us... You have all day to play with swords."

Inciness sighed and followed them over to the corner where they could select materials to build a shelter. The instructor hovered, offering assistance here and there. After about an hour they had a sort of hut that would offer some protection from the elements and Lumina smiled.

"You see, it's practically a house!"

"I doubt it's practical at all." Inciness replied, but Annie swore she could see a small smile being forced back. "You're from District Four." The girl suddenly turned toward her. Annie blinked.

"Yeah..."

"You can make nets for snaring people."

"Uhm. I suppose so..."

"If we can catch them we can kill them." Inciness continued.

"Yes..."

"You should teach us how to make nets."

"Sure..." Annie nodded, not liking the mental image of Inciness snaring her in one of her own nets and then running her through with something large and pointy.

"How'd you know she could do that?" Lumina asked.

"She's from Four." Inciness replied. "After the way Odair won, you don't think they teach everyone that in basic training?"

"Ah." Lumina nodded.

Annie blinked. If Inciness thought that she'd been trained, she wasn't going to correct her. She smiled, feeling slightly satisfied with herself. Finnick would be pleased. Leading them over to the selection of rope she grabbed a few and sat down, crossing her legs. The two girls followed suit. She showed them quickly how to weave the rope together to make a small section of net and then watched as they attempted to copy her. Seeing that they were both managing somewhat, she set about completing her own net. About ten minutes later she had one of decent size and she finished it off.

She helped both Inciness and Lumina finish theirs. "... Mine is not very good." Lumina observed.

"It's not terrible." Annie replied

"Not as good as mine." Inciness said. Annie looked over at hers. She was right. The crazy eyed girl from District Two was rather better at it than Lumina had been. The thought chilled her blood slightly.

"I can teach you how to turn them into a trap..." The instructor said, apparently eager for something to do. Lumina jumped to her feet.

"Yes!"

Inciness and Annie also got up and watched as the man showed them how to rig the net through something above their heads.

"I hope there are trees..." Inciness commented.

"There usually are. The games are too boring otherwise." Annie replied. Inciness nodded in agreement. Annie sighed as Aidan came over to them.

"Making nets?"

"No, we're baking cakes." Inciness replied, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, okay, cutie." He said, looking at her. Annie looked at the shocked look on Inciness' face and nearly laughed. Her amusement died when the boy turned his eyes on her. "Annie..." he said, smiling. "You look good with clothes on, too."

"Aidan." She said flatly.

"Here, hold this." Lumina pushed a rope into Annie's hands while she worked on another part of their trap.

"I'm just so impressed by your endless talents, Annie." Aidan continued, "I've seen you look amazing in that little outfit, tie knots, make fires, throw knives..." He grinned at her. "We'll definitely have to spend some time together in the arena..."

"You could spend some time with my spear." Inciness muttered. Aidan glanced at her.

"I'm not talking to you, Hostile."

"What makes you think I'm not hostile?" Annie asked.

"Oh," he looked her over. "I know just how sweet you'd be ... with the right amount of persuasion." Annie felt like she was going to be sick. "And I know you'll be nice and warmed up by Odair."

Annie let the rope she was holding go, and watched as the net fell down over Aidan's head, taking him to the ground and effectively trapping him.

"Oh, look." She said drolly. "It works." She then turned on her heel and walked away. Inciness followed her, laughing loudly. Lumina followed after them clearly pleased with how her trap had worked.

Reaching Torsti, Annie let out a huff.

"That guy is wrong." Torsi commented and she nodded slowly.

"I think he's going to be an issue." She replied.

"Not if we take him out at the beginning." Inciness put in. "I know I'd like to."

"Might be the best option." Lumina put in. "He says some pretty creepy shit."

Annie looked at her. She hadn't thought that the blonde girl had been listening. Mentally shaking herself, she reminded herself that just because Lumina had been friendly toward her and acted as though she were a normal girl, she must not forget that she'd spent her entire life training to kill people. She must remember that this girl was dangerous. Of course she would be paying attention to everything going on around her.

Looking back toward where they'd made their trap, Annie watched Aidan untangle himself from their net and get to his feet. The nasty look on his face made her shudder inwardly. He wouldn't forget that.

A hand on her arm made Annie turn back around to see Lumina looking at her. "Don't let what that creep said about Odair warming you up put you off..." she told her. "You enjoy him for all he's worth."

Annie blinked, sure that the colour was draining from her face. Why did everybody think that she was sleeping with Finnick?

* * *

Finnick got up slowly, trying not to disturb the dozing woman on the other side of the bed. He badly wanted a shower but would wait until he got back. He didn't want to risk getting caught here for another few hours if he made too much noise. Pulling his shirt on, he glanced at the bed once more only to see the electric blue eyes of the women, whose name he couldn't quite remember, looking at him.

"What are you doing?" she purred.

"Well, I'm getting dressed, love." He replied, his voice low.

"Are you leaving so soon?"

"I really should..." he replied, trying to look regretful. "I have a tribute to prepare for the Games, remember."

"Oh, he's very like you, that one." She smiled, sitting up on her knees to look at him better, her bare breasts covered in faint golden tattoos that wound up over her shoulders and down her back. Finnick blinked.

"Well, Annie's mine." He replied, "Torsti belongs to Mags."

The woman tilted her head, looking at him. "Why?"

"Just the way it worked out." He replied.

"Well, when she dies I guess you'll have more free time here before you have to go back to District Four." She smiled. He worked hard to keep the look of revulsion and horror off of his face.

"I wouldn't count her out." He answered, working a slight purr into his voice. "She has many skills that nobody else is aware about." He grinned at her. "In fact... If I were allowed to wager money on it, I'd be putting quite a fortune on Annie..." He gave her a wink as he finished buttoning his shirt.

"Really?" She asked excitedly.

"Would I lie to you?"

She smiled widely. "Well... we'll just see how she goes with her score and then I may be giving you another call..."

"I do look forward to it." He said, striding around the bed toward her side. He watched the way she looked up at him, her eyes more than a little unnerving they were that unnaturally bright. She almost looked like some kind of machine. "I trust you still have the number where I can be reached?"

"Of course."

He gave her a heart-melting smile and pressed a quick kiss to her lips before straightening up again and striding out the door without looking back. He headed back to the Training Centre as quickly as he could, wondering just how many of his acquaintances would be wishing Annie a swift death so that he would have more time for them. The thought was repulsive.

Stepping out of the elevator on the fourth floor, Finnick headed silently for his own room. He'd just reached the door when Annie came out of nowhere and he nearly collided with her.

"Finnick..." She said, frowning.

"Yeah? Uh... Is it important?" He asked, already sidestepping her. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Yes, it's important."

"Careful, don't touch me..." he murmured, extracting his arm from her grip. The hurt look on her face stopped him. "I just... need a shower." He added. The pity that followed the understanding that filled her eyes cut at him nearly as much as the hurt had.

"Sorry..." She said, moving away.

"No... I'm sorry." He sighed. "I can listen now..."

"No. It's not that important. I'll wait..." She blinked, looking at him and then reached up. "You've got blue...something... on you." She said, rubbing her thumb gently against his jaw and then showing him the bit she'd gotten off. He vaguely remembered the blue lipstick that woman had been wearing when he'd arrived. Annie then turned and headed back up the hallway before he could reply. He watched her turn the corner at the end of the hallway before he opened the door to his room and slipped inside. He rubbed viciously at his jaw, looking at the blue that ended up on his hand. Blinking, he tried to decide between the impulse to either break something or to cry.

Swearing loudly to try and make himself feel better, Finnick pulled his clothes off and threw them into the corner to join the pile of other things never to be worn again. He then stepped into the shower and turned the water up as hot as he could stand it without doing himself an injury. Once he was sure that the hot water had done all it could on its own, he blindly pressed about twenty buttons and closed his eyes as he was covered in all kinds of soapy bubbles. After about ten minutes of letting that soak into his skin, he rinsed himself off and got out of the shower. This time, he allowed himself to be dried and then he went in search of something comfortable to wear.

When dressed, he left his room and went looking for Annie. He found her in her room. After poking his head in and getting the 'okay' to enter, he stepped in. She was sitting in the middle of her large bed with her knees pulled up to her chest.

"Are you okay?" he asked. Her green eyes shot up to look at him and he felt himself freeze in place.

"I'm fine." She said stiffly.

"What is it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

He watched as she got to her feet and moved toward him. When she was about a metre from him, she stopped, her hands now on her hips. "Finnick... Why is it that everybody thinks we're having sex?"

* * *

Author's Note:

DUN DUN DUN

P.S. With the site being all weird and shoddy lately I want everybody to make sure they've read CH7. The numbers on it are smaller than CH8 and I'm concerned that people haven't seen it. :P


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Finnick blinked. "What?" he asked, frowning.

"Everybody thinks we're having sex. Why?" Annie asked, looking at him.

"I don't know? I didn't tell anybody that..." He looked right back at her. After a moment, he sighed. "My first year older than the tributes..." he murmured. "Somebody must have tried to find a way to spin it for the audience's amusement. I'm sorry, Annie."

She tilted her head, looking at him.

"It's not about you. It's about me. I'm sorry." He sat on the edge of her bed.

She sat next to him, still looking at him. "They don't torture you enough?" She asked.

"They sure try." He replied. He glanced at her when she touched his arm.

"Will it affect your reputation?" she asked.

"My reputation as a whore? I doubt it."

"You're not a whore."

"I am, actually."

"I'm sorry."

He looked at her. "No... I'm sorry. Everybody knows I'm a whore... but you..." he shook his head. "Your parents... your friends..."

He watched a strange expression work its way across her face and then it was gone.

"What do I care?" she asked softly, "I'll be dead in a week."

"Don't say that!" He said sharply. She blinked. He took a breath. "How do you know that everybody thinks that?"

"The other tributes... things they said..."

"And what did you say?" he asked, "Did you deny it or...?"

"I didn't say anything." She replied slowly. "I didn't know if we could use it or not."

He looked at her. "Does Torsti think so too?"

"I don't know." She murmured, "He's being weird."

"Does it bother you?" he asked, "That people think that?"

She shook her head. "It probably should." She replied, "But it doesn't." He looked at her, watching her stare silently at the opposite wall. "What bothers me is getting my score..."

He sat up straighter. "I may have an idea about that..."

"Oh?" Annie asked, turning her head to look at him.

"Yeah, will you show me how you dance?"

She blinked silently. "What? Why?"

"Please..."

She sighed and got to her feet, moving to the centre of the room where she turned to look at him. He brought his feet up to cross his legs on the bed as he made a show of getting comfortable. She smiled and then clearly forced her features back into a neutral expression. "Ready?" She asked. Finnick nodded, watching. Not a few moments later he was fascinated, watching her balance on one foot as she brought the other up past her head and then turning in place and practically floating to the other side of the room where she did something similar.

After a few minutes, Annie stopped and turned to look at him. "Satisfied?"

"... do you think that'd work with your knives?" he mused. She blinked, tilting her head to look at him.

"You want me to choreograph a dance... using the knives?"

"Could you?"

He watched her think for a moment before moving to pick one of the knives up. He watched her go up on one pointed foot, do a quick turn and then fling the knife at the target on her wall. It struck well, only slightly left of centre. "Maybe..." She replied thoughtfully. "Do you think they'd like it?"

"I really do... It would look so deadly."

She grinned, spinning back to look at him. "Not just a pretty face, Finnick."

"Not just." He smirked. He sat still as she moved to pick up a few more knives.

Returning to the centre of the room, she began moving again, ending every quick turn she did with a knife flung at the target. After a few moments she stopped with a huff.

"I need more targets." She said, glancing at him. "It will be boring if I have to keep turning the same way to throw them."

"Well, when you're doing it for them you can have as many targets as you like... You just need to decide where you want them."

"Right..." She looked at him. "Do you have a pen?"

Finnick blinked and reached into his pocket. "I do, actually..." He passed it to her, and watched as she moved around to blank walls drawing her own targets onto the paintwork. He grinned.

"I'm aware that this is awful manners..." She commented, midway through drawing her third target. "But considering I won't be around all that much longer... Don't care."

"Nor do I." He replied, sitting back against the pillows to watch her. She tossed him his pen when she was done. Turning in the centre of the room, she looked at each target carefully.

"Okay." She said softly, "One there... and there..." She turned slowly. "... there..." After a moment, she nodded. "Alright." She retrieved her knives from the original target and returned to the centre of the room. "Finnick..."

"Yeah?"

"Don't move." She breathed, before suddenly turning and throwing her first knife. He watched her bend and arch, pivot and throw for several minutes. It quickly became clear why she hadn't wanted him to move. Two of the seven knives she'd thrown hadn't made it anywhere near their intended target. She'd misjudged the location of one target by several metres, and another had ended up embedded in a wall that didn't even have a target on it. When she stopped, she bit her lip, looking around.

"Good start." He said brightly. She looked at him.

"I didn't stab you, did I?"

"You didn't."

"Good..." She headed for the stray knife in the wall and pulled it out. Finnick watched her look at it before she retrieved her other knives and returned to the centre of the room. She began her movements again, this time taking more care when it came to releasing her blades. Each of them made it onto their targets this time and he gave a light clap. The reproving look she gave him had him stop quickly.

"What?" he asked "It was good."

"It wasn't good."

"You hit all the targets."

"Yes, but by sacrificing the movements. They were slow, clumsy and hardly smooth."

"Ahh..."

He watched her do it again and grow more frustrated. "You just need to practice..." He told her.

"I don't have time!" She replied. "I have to do it tomorrow!" He got up and moved toward her.

"Listen to me." He said, taking the blades she'd retrieved from her hands and setting them aside. "You do have time. It doesn't have to be perfect." She began to protest, but he stopped her. "They just want a show. As long as you show them that you can give them what they want, your score will be fine. And, Annie, trust me, what you're already doing will excite them." He watched her sea green eyes search his for any signs of deceit. He smiled, "It'll be pretty obvious to them that anybody who can throw a knife and hit a target with one of their feet way above their head will be of great interest to their audience." He tucked the green piece of hair behind her ear and she nodded silently. Resting his hands gently on her shoulders, he looked carefully at her. "Breathe." He told her. She nodded again and took a slow, deep, breath. "Good..."

"I'm scared." She said softly.

"Of what?" he asked, and then wanted to punch himself in the throat. Of what? Did he expect her to pick just one thing?

"I'm scared that I'll stuff up and they'll think that I'm useless and give me a one or two..." she murmured, "Then everybody will think I'm pathetic and I'll die about twelve and a half seconds into the Games." Tears welled in her eyes as she spoke and Finnick wrapped his arms around her.

"That's not going to happen." He told her firmly. "I promise."

"It could." She murmured into his shirt.

"No." He stroked his hand slowly down her hair. "No, there's no way that is going to happen." He felt Annie's arms wrap cautiously around his waist and he held her more tightly, still stroking her hair. "You're going to go in there tomorrow, show them that you're absolutely amazing, impress the pants off them, and then bask in the glory of your brilliant score."

"Impress the pants off them...?" She murmured.

"Oh, right, sorry... that's my job."

"That's not funny." She breathed.

"It's a little funny..."

She shook her head.

He kept stroking her hair gently. He wanted to tell her that everything would be fine, but how could he say that? He wouldn't lie to her.

"Tomorrow is going to be fine." He said. There. Truth. After a moment, she nodded.

* * *

Annie rested her cheek against Finnick's chest. Closing her eyes, she listened to the slow, steady, beat of his heart, and slowly, she began to relax. As he stroked her hair gently, she tightened her arms around his waist and settled against him. For the first time since the morning of the reaping she began to feel calm.

"Thank you." She said softly.

"For what?" He asked, and she could feel his breath against her hair.

"I know this probably isn't a part of your duties as a mentor..."

She felt him stiffen. "You're right..."

"But I appreciate it." She breathed, and a moment later he'd relaxed again and his hand had resumed its slow stroking down the length of her hair.

"It's okay. I'm not going anywhere..."

She nodded and was silent, thinking of home. After a moment, she spoke again. "Finnick..."

"Yeah?"

"When you get back home..." She began, "Would you find my parents and tell them it isn't true...?"

"What they're saying about us?"

She nodded. "Yeah... I just... They'll think they didn't know me... and that would make this whole thing so much harder for them to bear. It would make it more awful. They did know me. I want them to know that."

"When you go home, you can tell them yourself..." he murmured.

"But if I..."

"I know. I promise." He answered softly.

"Thank you." She murmured.

"I don't know if they'll believe me..." He told her, his hand moving down her back. "I saw your dad when they came to say goodbye to you. If looks could kill..." he stroked her hair. "Never even met the man and he hates me. I doubt he'd believe anything I say."

"Mum will." She replied quietly.

"Alright." He kissed the top of her head lightly, and Annie's eyes opened. What was that? He let her go then and stepped back. She watched him run a hand through his hair, not looking at her. "You, uh... You should practice your thing..." he said, still not looking at her. "I... I'll talk to the mentors from Districts One and Two and see about this alliance..."

"Okay..." She said softly, watching him. He looked at her then and she couldn't read the expression on his face at all.

"Goodnight, Annie."

She didn't even have time to reply before he'd turned and hurried from the room. Annie watched the door close after him, and then blinked. _Well,_ she thought, _that's that, then._

Frowning as she moved to retrieve her knives again and return to the centre of the room, she tried to work out what had just happened. He'd kissed the top of her head. Okay. And then he'd run away. Why? Did he think he'd crossed some line? Had he? Was there some kind of rule that said mentors couldn't be affectionate with their tributes? Well, it would probably be a good rule to have. It would only make it harder to watch tributes die year after year if you'd spent time getting to know them better and forming attachments to them. Was that why he'd reacted the way he had? He didn't want to form an attachment to her... ? Maybe he already had and it had begun to freak him out. He was only a year older than she was. She knew that she would have trouble watching people she liked die year after year. Maybe she should distance herself from him a little. It might make it easier for him then when he had to watch her die.

Annie didn't know if she could do that. Finnick was the only part of this whole thing that had helped her control the utter terror waiting to come screaming out of her. It was probably selfish of her, but she didn't know if she could give that up.

Sighing, she realised that she was probably overanalysing the entire thing. She'd just see what he had to say tomorrow. She had to practice was she was going to show the gamemakers. Turing, she lined herself up for the start of her sequence and let the first blade fly.

* * *

Author's Note:

Reviews are love. Love me.

There's a sugar cube in it for you. ;)


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

_Finnick's hands ran down her body. He felt her shudder in pleasure beneath him as he worked his lips across her throat, teeth scraping here and there. They all loved this. There was rarely any need to vary his routine no matter who he had to see. He moved a hand down to her hip, keeping her in place as he shifted his angle slightly and the sharp fingernailed hand clawing at his arse confirmed her approval. He shuddered when those sharp nails then raked unpleasantly down his back. He knew they'd leave long red marks that he'd have to wear for a week._

_When the unnatural blue hair started to get into his mouth and choke him, he moved his lips up to her cheek, closing his eyes so that he wouldn't have to look at her. _

_The gentle hand that touched his cheek then was in such contrast to the hand that had only moments ago been tormenting his back that his eyes opened in surprise and he found himself staring into sea green eyes that were so very like his own._

_Gone was the ridiculous blue hair, replaced with long dark tresses that were fanned out around her. Gone were the claws that had been tearing into his skin; in their place was the gentle hand that was now stroking his cheek softly. A strange feeling surged through Finnick as he looked down upon her._

"_Annie..." he breathed._

_She just smiled and lifted her head to kiss him tenderly. Finnick returned the kiss fervently, his own hand making its way to her cheek as he pressed her back into the soft pillows. He felt her fingers trail down his chest lightly and he gave a slight shiver. Lifting his head slightly to look at her when her legs wrapped tightly around his waist, he was met with another smile. Brushing a lock of hair back from her face he watched her eyes flutter closed as he shifted over her and she bit back a small sound. Grinning, he repeated the action until he got to hear that sound and her hand clutched at his shoulder._

_Taking one of her hands in his, he linked his fingers through hers and then lifted it, pinning it above her head. Holding her in place, he smiled, kissing her again. As her free hand moved from his shoulder, carefully down his back, he moved his lips gently across her cheekbone and then began making his way down her throat. Tracing her collarbone lightly with the tip of his tongue, Finnick enjoyed the light shudder that passed through her accompanied by a small cry as her free hand fisted in his hair._

_Watching her face intently as he moved over her, Finnick shifted his angle again. The gasp he drew from her followed by the breathy way she said his name only urged him on and he quickened his pace, one of his hands still pinning hers above her head. His free hand grabbed a fistful of the sheet beside them and clenched tightly as she moved to meet him, now breathing his name repeatedly in his ear..._

Finnick awoke sweaty and gasping for air. Sitting up, he pushed his fringe back from his forehead where it was sticking unpleasantly to his skin.

"Fuck..." he groaned, tugging on his hair when images from his dream flashed through his mind. "No..." He closed his eyes at the thought of Annie lying beneath him as he tried his best to draw all kinds of sounds from her. "Fuck!"

Peeling back the sheet that was drenched in sweat and sicking to him, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed and got to his feet. Walking into the bathroom, he stepped into the shower and pushed random buttons.

Standing still under the onslaught of cold water he closed his eyes. What was his problem? It was clear to him now that he'd developed some sort of attachment to Annie. How could he not have when she was so kind? He did not, however, need to be having those kinds of dreams about her. Wasn't it enough that half of Panem was probably already under the impression that he was fucking her? Did his subconscious have to get in on it too?

That was it. After the talk he'd had with Annie earlier about everybody thinking they were sleeping together, his subconscious was trying to work through it as he slept. Yes. That had to be it.

There was no other explanation, really.

He may be a whore, but he knew he wasn't a shit enough person to be trying it on with one of his tributes only days before he would be sending her into the arena to die. Add to that the fact that the girl was a virgin and she certainly wouldn't be looking to crawl into his bed at all. Even if she did want to experience that before she died, it wouldn't be him she'd go to. Who would want their first experience of such things to be with a whore? Somebody as sweet as Annie certainly wouldn't. No, if she went looking for that he'd bet it would be Torsti's door she went knocking on. The thought drew a snarl from him. Blinking, he turned the water off.

Getting out, he pulled some clean clothes on and then found himself in the hallway. He'd just make sure that she was in her room and safe...

* * *

Annie sat at the breakfast table the next morning, pushing her tangled hair back from her face. She'd spent the night tossing and turning having nightmares about nets. Yawning as she rested her elbow on the table, she tried to force away the mental image of herself being caught in one of her nets and having Inciness and Aidan coming at her while she struggled to get free.

Finnick wordlessly handed her some District Four bread and she took it without comment.

"Sleep well?" Torsti asked, looking at her. She glowered.

"No."

"Why's that?"

"I kept having nightmares about being caught in nets and stabbed to death." She replied flatly. Finnick looked quickly at her. "With knives." She added, "And spears... Not tridents."

"Does it make a difference?" he murmured.

"Repeated dreams?" Torsti asked.

"Well, not the same one over and over... each time they figured out a new and interesting way to impale me on something." She pulled the bread in her hands apart. "And then at about four in the morning my door opened and I thought they'd come to get me in my bed..." She blinked when Finnick looked at her again. _Ah_, she thought, _It was you._

Torsti just laughed. "The paranoia is beginning to set in."

"Shouldn't it be?" She asked "I mean, we're pretending to befriend people who are actually planning to murder us..."

Torsti shrugged and she frowned. "I trained for it." He replied, chewing on his food.

"Yeah, I didn't."

He nodded and Annie ate in silence. When her plate was cleared, she excused herself and went back to her room. She couldn't expect him to understand. He'd volunteered for this. He'd actually wanted to come and go through all of this. There's no way he could see where she was coming from. In three days time she would be in the arena and these people that she was getting to know and having lunch with every day would be trying to kill her. She still hadn't managed to come to terms with that.

She got up from her bed when there was a soft knock on the door. Walking over, she pulled it open to see Finnick standing there. Sighing, she stepped back from the door to let him in.

"Are you okay?" he asked, closing the door behind himself.

"I'm fine."

He looked at her and she once again couldn't read the expression on his face. She didn't like it.

"Why'd you open my door in the middle of the night?" She asked. There. That was better. Take the offensive.

She thought he went a little pale.

"I just... wanted to check on you." He replied, his hand moving through his hair.

"Why?"

"To make sure you were... safe."

Annie blinked, looking at him. "Why wouldn't I be safe?"

"I don't know." He murmured, not looking at her again.

Moving forward, Annie hugged him. "The dreams won't go away, will they?" she asked. "You still have them, don't you?"

"Sometimes." He replied, his hands gently moving down her back. "Did you practice for the Gamemakers?"

"Yes."

"Good." He murmured. "You have to go down, soon."

"I know."

Two hours later Annie sat beside Torsti down in the dining room. First Maverick and then Lumina had been called to do their thing for the Gamemakers. Jarek gave them a cocky wink when it was his turn and Inciness spent the time waiting to be called by picking her teeth with a toothpick.

"What are you doing for them?" Torsti asked her quietly when the boy from District Three was called. Annie had learned that his name was Varen.

"I'm going to dance for them." She replied simply. He looked at her disbelievingly.

"Did Odair tell you to do that?"

"He did, actually."

"You can't be serious, Annie."

She turned her eyes on him, green meeting grey. "Yes."

"Look," he began in a low voice, leaning toward her. "You need to show them what you can do."

"I am."

"Something relevant." He replied, "You can make nets... traps... you have skills!"

When she did nothing but look at him, Torsti sighed. "You're going to get yourself a one or two and then you'll be a target."

Annie blinked. He hadn't mentioned her knife throwing skills. Had he even seen her do it? She didn't think he had. Maybe he didn't know that she could. Mags knew. Why hadn't she told him? Maybe Finnick had asked her not to...

If he had been excluded from that piece of knowledge on purpose, she wasn't going to let the cat out of the bag. He was, after all, going to become her enemy sooner or later.

"Annie..." He continued. "You can't dance."

"I can."

He grunted in frustration. "I don't know what Odair has said to you, but it's wrong. That may be the way he goes about things... but it's not going to get you a good score."

"He won his games at fourteen. Don't forget that." She replied absently.

"Nobody from District Four will forget that." He muttered, rolling his eyes.

"What is your issue with Finnick?" she asked, looking at him.

"I don't have one. Aside from the fact that he's clearly misleading you."

"Misleading me, how?"

"Dancing for the Gamemakers? This isn't a brothel."

Annie felt a snarl work its way on to her face.

"That's exactly what it is."

He sighed. "You know what I mean."

"I don't." She replied. "Nobody is misleading me."

"Taking advantage of you, then."

She just looked at him. "What?"

"I'm a light sleeper." He replied. "I hear him coming and going from your room at all hours of the night."

Annie wanted to slap him. "Mentoring me." She growled.

"If that's what you want to call it."

Her jaw dropped. "You have a smutty mind."

"I've seen the way he looks at you." He replied as the girl from District Three was called in to see the Gamemakers.

"You have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh, please." He looked at her. "He touches you every time you're within a metre of him."

"He does not."

"Oh? Has he seen you do this dance you're doing for the Gamemakers? Did he ask you to dance for him?"

Annie felt the colour rise in her cheeks. That seemed to be all the reply Torsti needed as he leaned back, looking at her.

"Why are you listening to him?" He asked after about ten minutes of silence between them.

"Because I trust him!" she snapped.

"That's a mistake." He breathed as he was called to head in to the Gamemakers. "You'd be better off placing your trust elsewhere?" he added as he stood up.

Annie watched him go. _Where? _She thought, _With you?_

After about fifteen minutes, it was Annie's turn and she quickly headed in. Smoothing her hair back, she stepped forward, looking up at the Gamemakers. Most of them were seated, facing her while some picked at the food which was piled high on their plates.

"Good afternoon." She said, loudly. "I'm Annie Cresta, from District Four." She watched as some of them smiled, while some of them openly sniggered, looking down at her. Blinking, Annie turned and looked around. Spotting several human shaped targets, she wheeled them around until she had them arranged where she needed, and then selected several throwing knives.

Moving to stand in the centre of the floor, she checked the position of her targets. Glancing at the Gamemakers to be sure they were watching, Annie readied herself and then began her sequence.

* * *

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	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Annie sat in her room all afternoon, refusing to come out. She knew that she was being childish, but short of stabbing Torsti in the leg with one of her knives, it was the best she could manage.

Finnick had not been present all day, and so she had been left to her own devices. This had mainly included playing with the window buttons and taking ridiculously long showers. When Pansy knocked on her door and told her that it was Dinner Time, she finally agreed to come out. On her way to the Dining Room she saw Finnick getting out of the elevator and she headed toward him. He raised his hands and stepped back hastily when she reached him.

"Don't touch me..."

"I wasn't going to..." She replied, looking at him. He looked close to tears. She didn't know what to say. She wanted to hug him, but it was clear that he was uncomfortable with her touching him until he'd cleaned himself off. "Are you going to shower before dinner?" she asked. "Pansy just said it's about to be served."

"Yeah..." he murmured, not looking at her. He was uncomfortable with her even seeing him like this, she realised.

"Okay." She stepped further away, "I'll save you some bread..." With that she turned and hurried into the Dining Room.

Sitting at the table in her usual seat, Annie avoided looking at Torsti. Mags immediately started dishing out some delicious smelling stew that had just been put on the table.

"Well, I suppose we should all start." Pansy commented. "It doesn't look like Finnick is coming."

"I just saw him get back." Annie said, "He'll be in here in a minute."

"Well, no sense in letting the food go cold." Torsti replied, helping himself to some soup. Annie didn't look at him. Instead she reached for the bread basket in the centre of the table, actually having to lift herself out of her seat to get to it. Placing a District Four roll on Finnick's empty plate she then sat one on her own before filling her bowl up with the wonderful smelling stew. Tearing the bread into chunks she began soaking up the juices.

They ate in silence until Finnick came in. Annie was pleased to see the awful expression he'd worn before had been replaced by his usual smile. "'evening, all." He said, sitting down.

"Now that we're all here..." Pansy said, her tone crisp. "How did you both go today?"

"Well," Torsti began, and Annie forced herself to look at him. "I think I did pretty well. I hope Annie is prepared for her score." His silvery eyes met hers and she scowled.

"I'm sure Annie's score will be fabulous." Finnick said, picking up the bread she'd put on his plate and smiling at her.

"No thanks to you." Torsti commented.

"Why would it be thanks to me?" Finnick asked, "Annie did it all."

"You had her dance! Are you serious? You can't actually be that stupid."

Annie watched Finnick's green eyes flick to her and then back to Torsti. "It's not your business what she does." He replied slowly.

"You're meant to help her!"

"He does help me." Annie put in, her eyes narrowed at Torsti. "You don't know what you're talking about... Just, stop."

He stared at her, then got to his feet. "Call me when my score will be announced." He said, taking a piece of bread and leaving the room. Annie sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"... You danced?" Pansy asked, looking at her. She nodded and Pansy sighed deeply. "Well, that's that."

Annie looked to Finnick who shook his head slightly. She dropped her eyes to her plate.

"Did it go well?" Mags asked.

"Yes." Annie said softly. "It did."

"Good."

Annie swirled bread around in her stew. She wanted to tell Torsti what she'd really done. He'd find out sooner or later anyway. The moment they were in the arena and he tried to kill her it would become apparent when the only way she could defend herself was with her knives. _He's not your friend, _she reminded herself. The thought just worsened her mood.

After a while, Pansy began explaining to Annie what would be happening over the next two days. How she would be prepared for her interview with Caesar Flickerman and then how she would be taken to the arena. Annie listened while chewing silently.

When he'd cleaned his plate, Finnick got up and excused himself. Annie began pulling apart a sweet roll that had been put on the table as she watched him leave the room. When she was done with the role, she'd just gotten to her feet when raised voices from the hallway reached her. Hurrying toward them, she'd just entered the hallway when she saw Torsti lunge at Finnick who avoided him easily.

"What is your problem?" Finnick asked loudly.

"My problem is you!" Torsti retorted, "That people who don't volunteer for this thing, that aren't trained, end up with you for a mentor! You're out screwing around all day, not doing your job! Then, when you are here you take advantage of innocent girls and you're still not doing your job!" He glared, "You think that just because women seem to fall at your feet that you can get away with whatever you like! You're just slut, Odair!"

Annie watched silently, as she moved slowly up the hall toward them.

"Do you know the difference between a slut and a whore, Torsti?" Finnick asked calmly. Torsti just looked at him. "Let's look at something. How many girls have you slept with?"

"What's that have to do with anything?" Torsti asked.

"Just give me a number."

"Six."

"Six." Finnick repeated. "Willingly?"

"Obviously."

"Hmm. Can you guess how many I have?"

"Do numbers go that high?" Torsti commented.

"None." Finnick said icily.

"Crap." Torsti muttered.

"It's not." Finnick replied flatly. "Snow has been selling me since I was sixteen. I've lost count of how many people I've been with. Men and women. But not one of them was by my own choice. I don't have that luxury. So, I'm not a slut. I'm a whore."

"Fine." Torsti said, "But you still shouldn't half-arse a job when somebody's life is on the line."

"I don't." Finnick replied, his tone low.

"Dancing is not going to get Annie a decent score."

"You underestimate her." Finnick replied. "If you think she'd do something for no good reason just because somebody told her to... "

"Not just somebody." Torsti said. "You. I think she'd do it just because you told her to."

Finnick raised an eyebrow and looked past Torsti and straight at Annie. Torsti turned to meet her eyes. Annie just looked at him.

"I'm not an idiot." She said, "Nor am I a slut. The fact that you think I'd just go jumping into bed with somebody I just met only days before I'm going into the arena is insulting."

She watched him nod slowly. "I get why you're concerned." She added, "But I trust Finnick and his judgement. He's only ever helped me. You need to move past this."

Torsti frowned, watching her. "I want you to do well..." he said, "They'll not accept the alliance if you don't."

"I know that."

"I don't see how dancing will achieve that."

"You wouldn't." Annie replied, "Because you didn't see what I did."

He frowned. She just looked at him as his eyes moved over to her and then across to Finnick.

"Ah." He said, "Secrets."

"I do love secrets." Finnick said silkily. "They keep people alive."

"Or get them killed." Torsti replied before turning and walking into his room. The door closed and Annie turned to Finnick. Running a hand through her hair, she sighed.

"There's about half an hour before the scores will be revealed." He said to her.

"Okay."

"Do you want to tell me about today?" he asked. Annie nodded and crossed the hall, opening the door to her own room and going inside. Sitting on the bed, she pushed her hair back from her face. She'd expected Finnick to sit beside her like he usually did, but instead he sat in a chair by the wall. Watching him, she waited for him to speak. "So... It went well?" he asked.

"Yes, I mean, I think so." She said, leaning back on her hands. "When I came in and told them who I was, some of them seemed to find it amusing... but then I just set up my stuff and did my routine..." she looked at him. "I think they liked it. Some of them looked impressed, others smiled... I don't know. They just told me that I could go..."

"That's pretty much how it works." He nodded. He smiled, looking at her. "So...?"

"Nine out of ten knives were pretty much spot on."She gushed. "Only one was a bit off... but I don't think it mattered." He laughed.

"See, I told you today would be fine."

"Yeah." She agreed. "If I get a good score, it will be." She sat up and looked at him again. "So tomorrow... Pansy said I'd train with her and then with you...?"

"Yes."

"And Torsti will with Mags."

"Yes."

"... Will I really have to spend a whole day with Lena and the Prep Team before the interview?"

"That depends on them and what they want to do to you."

"A whole day?" She asked, "What will they try and do? Turn me into Lumina?"

"I hope not." He replied. "That would be awful."

"She's gorgeous."

Finnick just looked at her before getting to his feet. "Let's go get ready in the Sitting Room." He said. Annie got to her own feet and followed him to the door.

"What do you think I'll get?" She asked as they walked down the hallway.

"I don't know." He answered softly, and then looked down at her. "I'd give you a twelve."

"I won't get a twelve." She grinned "Nobody does... Maybe a seven. Would that be enough, do you think?"

"I think so." He replied, "They've already taken an interest in you, don't forget. They think you have something worthwhile anyway."

"Yeah..."

"And you do." He smiled.

She smiled back as they reached the Sitting Room. Mags was just turning the television on and Pansy was arranging herself on her chair.

"You get everything sorted with the boy?" Mags asked Finnick when she turned around.

"I think so." He replied, following Annie to one of the couches.

"The program is about to begin..." Pansy said, "Would Torsti like to see the whole thing, or just the scores?"

"I don't know..." Annie replied. The woman jumped to her feet.

"I'll go and ask him."

She returned with Torsti a few minutes later and they all turned their attention to the screen when the Capitol anthem began to play. They began with a quick recap of the reapings and then the Opening Ceremony. After a tiring ten minutes of watching chariots move around and tributes waving at the crowd, they got to the scores.

Not surprisingly, Maverick scored a nine and Lumina an eight. Both Jarek and Inciness scored a ten. Annie and Torsti exchanged a look and Annie shifted uncomfortably in her seat. That was just scary.

She tried to focus again as Varen appeared on screen, followed by a seven. The girl from his district got a five.

"Here we go!" Pansy said brightly. Annie wanted to hide. Instead, she forced herself to watch as Torsti was shown followed by his score of ten. "Oh, well done!" Pansy cried, turning to look at him.

"Thanks." He replied, clearly pleased with himself. Annie held her breath, looking back to the screen where her face had just appeared.

"Breathe." Finnick's voice said in her ear as his hand rubbed her arm. She took a breath just as the number eight materialised. Letting out a shocked cry, she turned and flung her arms around his neck. Laughing, Finnick hugged her tightly. "You see? You did great."

She nodded, laughing. "I can't believe it."

"I can."

She let him go, looking at him, unable to wipe the huge smile off her face.

"That must have been one impressive dance." Torsti said, and Annie turned her eyes on him. He smiled at her.

"It was." She replied, smiling back.

"Let's see what else we have..." Finnick suggested and they all looked back to the screen where the girl from District Six was given a four.

Next, came Aidan and the nine that appeared beneath his image sent Annie's blood cold.

"No..." She breathed and Finnick's hand began rubbing her arm again.

The girl from District Seven scored a six, and then Annie frowned when the young boy from District Eight, who had to be only twelve, scored a four. The boy from District Nine scored an Eight and Annie tried to recall even seeing him at training. She wondered how she could have missed him with his flaming red hair. She didn't recognise the next few either until they got to the girl from District Eleven. Annie remembered seeing the beautiful dark skinned girl the night they'd watched the reapings on the train. She scored a six. Then there were just the two tributes from District Twelve, both of whom ended up with fives.

"Well, that's not so bad..." Torsti commented when the anthem played again and Mags turned the television off. Annie just stared at the blank screen.

"Aidan and the boy from District Nine..." She murmured.

"His name is Mordred." Torsti told her.

"Doesn't suit him with hair like that." She replied, looking at him. "Mordred is a dark haired person's name. Not red."

Torsti just blinked. "Well, he got a score equal to yours." He said, "And you can bet he didn't dance for it."

Annie nodded. "So... It's those two, then One and Two..."

"Yep. That makes six a real threat." Torsti mused.

"Six out of twenty two..." Finnick said softly to Annie. "Worse things happen at sea."

She nodded slowly.

"Well, considering the big day we have tomorrow, I think everybody should get some sleep." Pansy said, getting to her feet. "Up! Let's go!"

Annie got silently to her feet and shuffled out the door after their escort.

She'd just pulled the covers of her bed back when her door opened. Jumping, she turned to see Finnick.

"Uh... Sorry." He murmured. "Probably should have knocked..."

"Yeah..." she said, watching as he closed the door behind himself. "What're you doing?" she asked.

He blinked and looked at her. "Oh, no..." he looked around. "I just wanted to tell you something."

"Okay..." She replied, sitting on her bed and looking expectantly at him.

"What Torsti said, about me not being here and doing my job... I'm sorry... I'm sorry for that. Really, I am."

"You don't have to apologise for that, Finnick." She said softly. "I know it's not your choice. Also, you've done everything I've needed... There's nothing else that I could have asked for."

He nodded, looking at her. "Okay."

She gave a small smile. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Tomorrow..." he said, "When you're meant to have your few hours with me to prepare for your interview... I'll be here. I swear it."

"I believe you."

"Okay. Good." He took a step toward the door. "Good... I'll see you tomorrow, then." He'd just reached the door when a thought occurred to Annie.

"Finnick?"

"Yeah?" he turned to face her once more.

"What you said to Torsti... Was it true?"

"Was what true?"

"The number of people you've been with willingly..." she murmured, her eyes meeting his.

"None." He confirmed.

She blinked and then he was gone, the door closing gently behind him. Slipping beneath the covers, Annie curled up. It was beyond horrible. How could somebody be forced to live like that? He'd said that had been the way of it since he'd been sixteen. Annie remembered Finnick at sixteen. She remembered the big deal that had been made in District Four when all of a sudden President Snow had demanded that he make trips to The Capitol during the year between the games. To think that had been the reason behind it... and Finnick had hid the horror of it so well... a boy of just sixteen, alone in The Capitol being sold to strangers who probably had all kinds of tastes... Hiding her face beneath the covers, Annie curled tighter and cried for him.

* * *

Author's Note:

Reviews make the world go 'round.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

Finnick had just seated himself at the breakfast table the next morning and reached for a glass of orange juice when the gut wrenching scream made him jump about a foot into the air.

"ANNIE?" he yelled, on his feet instantly and running for the hallway. He reached her door a moment before Torsti and crashed into the room with the blond boy behind him. She screamed again and it chilled him to the bone. "Annie!" he crossed the room to where she was tangled in blankets in the centre of her bed, thrashing. Climbing onto the bed, he grabbed her by the shoulders. "Annie! Wake up!"

She cried, thrashing again. Lifting her, he pulled her to himself, holding her still. "Wake up." He said, "You're fine... You're okay..."

Her crying changed and he knew that she'd woken. Loosening his hold on her a little, he looked down at her. Blinking at him, she wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.

"It's okay." He breathed, stroking her hair. Looking up, he saw Torsti standing by the bed while Mags and Pansy watched from the doorway. It wasn't uncommon for tributes to wake up screaming from nightmares as the Games drew closer. "I've got her." He said to them. He blinked at Mags as she gave him a resigned sort of look and then turned, following Pansy back toward the Dining Room. He looked at Torsti until he turned and followed them. "...Annie?"

"I had a nightmare." She murmured, disentangling herself from him and the blankets.

"Yes, I gathered that." He watched as she sat up and pushed her dark tangle of hair back from her face. Her face was pale with puffy red blotches. "About the Games?"

She nodded, sniffing slightly. "It was Aidan." She murmured, fiddling with the corner of the bedspread. "He's been saying how we should spend time together in the arena..." She looked up, meeting his eyes. "He's scary."

Finnick frowned. He could only imagine what that boy would do to Annie if he got her alone in the arena. "Yeah..." he replied, looking back at her. "If you see him and you have knives, don't hesitate."

She twisted her hands. "I know."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "I need a shower."

"Okay, well... I'll be at breakfast..."

"Thanks."

He nodded, got to his feet and headed for the door. Closing it after himself, he got a glimpse of Annie throwing herself back down on the bed. Mags cornered him before he even got back to the Dining Room.

"You're too close to that girl." She said simply.

"I'm not..." he replied, looking down at her.

"Finnick..." She sighed, "You are. You're too attached to her. You're not going to be able to handle watching her die."

"Should I be able to?" he asked, "Should I really be taking care of these kids year after year and remain emotionally unattached so that I can sit back and watch them be slaughtered? Really?"

Mags looked around before returning her gaze to him. "Keep your voice down..."

He dropped his voice to a whisper. "If I have to make it harder on myself to make it easier for her, then I will."

Finnick had the distinct impression that Mags was looking right into his soul. After a moment, the woman gave a slow nod.

"Alright, Finnick." She said heavily. "Alright."

He put an arm around her and led her into the Dining Room. It was only a few minutes later when Annie joined them.

"...Sorry." She said, looking at her plate.

"Oh, it's quite common, you know." Pansy replied, "It happens just about every year."

"Okay..." Annie murmured. Finnick handed her some District Four bread. "Thank you."

"Well," he said, "After the scoring last night, Mags and I talked to the mentors for Districts One and Two..." Both Annie and Torsti looked up at him. "They want both of you."

Torsti smiled brightly. "Excelllent."

Annie just returned her attention to the bread she was pulling apart. Finnick watched her. After a few moments she turned her head to look at him. He just blinked. She raised an eyebrow questioningly. It was then he realised that his hand was on her knee, and he didn't remember putting it there. "Uh... are you alright?" he asked, removing his hand. "You don't look too pleased... about the alliance."

"Pleased... sure... and thank you for organising it." She replied softly, meeting his gaze. "But... tomorrow night will be the last night that I can get some rest without worrying about my throat being cut in my sleep." She blinked.

He nodded silently. Of course. From here on, all the tributes would likely be having these types of thoughts; random things that stick in their minds and fester with worry. He was prevented from saying anything when the blonde Avox girl slipped him a bit of paper. He stared at it. Looking up, he saw Annie staring at it, too. He turned his eyes on Mags. "He can't do this today..."

She shrugged, looking back at him. He opened the paper and read the name on it, along with the time and place. He glanced at the clock on the wall before looking back to Annie. She simply met his gaze silently. After her four hours with Pansy, she was meant to start her preparation for her interview with him at two o'clock. "I'll be back by one thirty." He told her. "I promise."

"Alright." She replied, watching him.

He sighed and got to his feet. Hurrying back to his room, he changed and then headed down in the elevator. Using the back entrance as they were expected to do for these kinds of arrangements, Finnick slipped out the door and found himself standing beside Cashmere. He looked her over, from her elegantly curling blonde hair to the tiny red dress that she wore.

"Nice dress, Cashmere." He commented as a black car turned into the driveway, presumably to take Cashmere to wherever it was that President Snow had ordered.

She flicked a glance at him. "Nice face, Finnick."

He smiled and watched her get into the car. Twisting the rope bracelet that he wore on his left wrist, Finnick tried to think of home as the next black car headed toward him. This was his. He got into the back seat and sat quietly. The driver didn't ask him where he was going, and Finnick guessed he already knew.

Looking again at the slip of paper, he went over the name. Claudia Vellora. It was a name he'd not seen before. This one was new. Snow must have made a killing.  
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, trying to make it sit neatly the way the Capitol women liked. Looking down at the rope around his wrist again, he once more tried to think of home. The gulls would be going mad over the leftovers from the morning's haul by now. The fish markets by the docks would be in full operation. He could practically taste the ocean air.  
Leaning back against the leather seat, he let his mind explore home. It didn't last long, and before he knew it, the car had come to a stop outside a very expensive looking building. Getting out, Finnick looked up at it. There had to be a hundred floors. Only very prominent people would live here. Looking again at the paper, he said the name softly. "Claudia Vellora." He didn't know who she was, but there was something about the name... Atticus Vellora. He'd heard that name before. Who was Claudia? His wife, maybe?

Striding into the building, Finnick headed confidently for the front desk. That was the trick to these things; you had to look as if you belonged. The girl behind the desk looked at him and just pointed to the elevators. Right, so the staff knew what was going on. Turning, he strode into the elevator where the button for the top floor was pushed for him. _Well,_ he thought, _Fancy._

He spent the ride to the top floor in silence and when the doors opened he stepped out of the elevator without looking back. "Oh, you're here... Right on time!"

_Not Atticus Vellora's wife_, he thought as a young woman with long dark hair turned to face him, _His daughter. _Well, who could tell, really? The fact that this girl looked no older than he himself was didn't really mean much.

"Right on time." He answered, giving her one of his best smiles. She clapped her hands in a fluttery fashion, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Oh, good!" She gestured at a small round table with two chairs seated by a gigantic window that covered the entire east wall of the apartment. "Come and sit..."

Finnick strode forward, taking a seat and looking out of the window. The view was breathtaking. They had to be in one of the largest buildings in The Capitol. He could see everything.

"So, Finnick Odair..." She began. They all did that; the new ones. They couldn't help but refer to him by his full name. Just another indicator that they weren't interested in him as a person. Just as a body. Another possession to be bought and sold. "Aren't you just as gorgeous in person..."

"Am I?" he forced a wide smile. "How wonderful."

"I must apologise for the hour of the appointment..." She said, taking up the other seat at the table. "I would have preferred the evening... but my father said this is all that he could arrange for today. And, well, as today is my birthday, we shall have to make do with this morning." She looked at him. "Yes, yes. You are my birthday present." She laughed loudly.

_Your father got you a whore for your birthday._ The thought nearly left his mouth, but Finnick had become adept at holding his tongue. Instead he said, "How exciting."

"Oh, it is." Her blue eyes looked him over hungrily. "I'm nineteen today." She added, "You and I are the same age."

"Perfect."

"Oh, I know I don't really look it..." she made a face. Finnick knew what she wanted to hear. He always knew.

"I would have thought you were twenty five." He purred.

Claudia laughed, delighted. "Would you like some wine?"

"I think it's a little early for me..."

"Oh, come on." She grinned, pouring two glasses. He took the glass she forced into his hand as she leaned over the table, making sure to give him a clear view down her dress. He watched as she sat back in her own chair and downed her glass of wine in one go. "Well... drink up." She added when he hadn't raised his to his lips. Finnick lifted his glass and took a sip. When she gave him a look, he raised it again and drained it. She smiled, licking her lips. "Good."

He placed the empty glass on the table and gave her another smile.

"Do you like my wig?" she asked, looking at him.

"It's gorgeous."

"I thought you'd think so." She grinned, running her fingers through it. "It's not something I'd usually choose... But doesn't it remind you of someone?" She flicked the ends. "Perhaps a certain tribute you're fond of..."

Finnick felt ill. Had this girl tried to make herself look like Annie to entice him? Why bother? She'd already paid for him. She giggled, twirling a piece of long dark hair around her finger. "I've heard you're very fond of your tribute."

"And how have you heard that?"

"Oh, talk..." She winked. She suddenly took the wig off to reveal shoulder length lavender coloured hair. "It's so itchy, though. What a pain."

Finnick resisted a relieved sigh and watched as Claudia filled her wine glass again. Getting to her feet, she downed it. "Now, Finnick Odair..." She looked down at him. "Do you want to eat first?"

"I'm not hungry..." he replied, watching her. She moved to the other side of the room and put some music on.

"Are you having a good birthday?" he asked.

She turned to look at him. "Well, that's going to depend on how good you are." She smirked, walking toward him. "You know, I've had a crush on you for years..." she purred, "Ever since your Games."

"Have you?" he kept his voice low.

"Oh, yes." She ran a hand down her own dress. "I was so happy when you won. You were spectacular. I've watched as you've come back to The Capitol each year... still as beautiful as ever."

Finnick nodded, listening. This was the usual spiel. Nothing he hadn't heard before.

"When I turned seventeen, I told my father that I had to have you." She said. He blinked, watching her. "He thought I was too young." She smiled. "But I'm not too young, now."

"No, love. You're not."

She suddenly touched her hair. "Do you like my hair?" she asked, "I had it changed yesterday."

"Very colourful." He replied. She smiled.

"I thought so." She grinned at him. "Lavender is going to be the next big thing, you wait and see."

"Oh, I'm sure it will be when everyone sees how great you look."

"Do you think I'm beautiful, Finnick Odair?" She asked, slinking toward him.

"Absolutely." He could hardly keep up with this girl, jumping from one tack to the next.

"Do you want to touch me...?" She asked, coming to stand in front of him.

"Do you even have to ask?" He tried to work a purr into his voice, but wasn't sure he was successful. She reached out and took his hand, lifting it, and then placed it just beneath her breast.

"Then touch me."

He moved his hand up, sliding along the satiny material of her dress. He watched her eyes close and she arched into him as he cupped her breast. An instant later she had hiked her already short dress up around her hips and straddled his lap. "Let's not mess around..." She breathed. "I do so hate to waste time."

Finnick believed that as Claudia wasn't even wearing underwear. "I can see that..." he said softly. She smiled.

"No harm in being prepared." She replied.

Finnick nodded and an instant later she was kissing him. He'd barely had time to register that when her hands were tugging at his shirt, pulling it open. He forced himself to return her kiss and his hands slid down her back to rest at her waist. He felt her begin to move against him and he lifted a hand to her cheek to get her attention. "Don't you want to move to the bedroom?"

"Don't you like the view?" she responded, grinning wickedly.

"It's great."

"Then here's fine..." She kissed him again, "Besides," she added, "I've not had sex on a chair before..."

Finnick jumped when she suddenly slipped her hand down into his pants. She looked up, disappointed. "Don't you like me?" She asked.

"Of course I do, love."

She pouted. "Do you want me to put the wig back on...?"

"No-" he protested, but she was already leaning back over to the table and putting it on.

"There." She smiled, looking at him. "I'm a helpless tribute... you need to teach me everything."

"Annie isn't helpless." He told her.

"Oh, Annie. That's her name. I'd forgotten." Claudia nodded. She then grinned at him and pushed the straps of her dress off her shoulders, letting it fall and pool around her waist. She shifted against him again. "So? What did Annie do for you to help her get that score?" she purred, unbuttoning his pants.

"Nothing. She did it herself." He replied softly, his eyes closing. He didn't want to be talking about Annie here. She didn't belong here. Not anywhere near Claudia, not in this situation. Images of his dream suddenly flooded his mind. Annie on her back beneath him, breathing his name while he moved over her... Her hand clutching at his shoulder as she shuddered in pleasure... Finnick groaned, his head dropping back against the chair as he felt himself grow hard.

Claudia made a pleased sound. "Oh, I knew the hair would do it." She laughed. Lifting his head, he looked at her. She just grinned at him and began to work him quickly with her hand. Closing his eyes and clenching his teeth, Finnick tried to imagine that he was somewhere else. After a few moments, Claudia was apparently satisfied with her work and she pressed a quick kiss to his lips. Opening his eyes, he watched her lift herself up and settle over him. With no warning she then lowered herself, pushing herself firmly down on him. She gave a small gasp and he couldn't hold back another groan. She was still for a few moments, and then she braced herself with a knee either side of him on the chair. When she was happy with her leverage, she began to move. He kept his hands on her hips as she moved. His eyes closed again when she leaned forward, thrusting her breasts into his face and covering him in that long dark hair. He wouldn't think about Annie while this woman rode him. He wouldn't.

* * *

Author's Note:

Reviews are love.

* * *

Dear Guest Reviewer:

Because I couldn't reply to your review, I'll leave a reply here.

Thank you for your thoughtful review. I do very much appreciate it. I know where you're coming from; I wrestled with the same thoughts while writing it. I wanted to keep it however... :P So, I decided that only being nineteen here, Finnick is still a bit reckless in what he says and where he says it. I think that later on, Snow will 'pursuade' him to keep everything a little more hush-hush. Also, in this story at least some people in District Four already know a little of what goes on. Annie's father in the first two or so chapters alluded to it a few times when illustrating his dislike for Finnick despite never having met him. Torsti was also the one who told Annie... and having been trained, it would have been the other Victors who told him.

Thank you for your great review. It's shown me what I need to explain in more depth. *hugs to you*

*hugs to everybody else who reviewed also*


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

Finnick returned to the Training Centre just after one in the afternoon. Thankful that nobody spotted him coming out of the elevator, he walked silently up the hallway. Making it to his room without being seen, he turned the shower on and got in. Sinking to the tiles, he sat on the floor under the hot water for ten minutes with his head in his hands.

When he felt as if every last bit of Claudia had been washed from his skin, he got out and got dressed. Instead of then going to lunch, he headed for Mags' room. He was relieved to find the door open and when he looked inside she was sitting on her bed, running a brush through her long grey hair.

When she saw him, she smiled. "You're back."

Finnick stepped toward her, trying to hold in the tears that had been threatening to fall since he'd left Claudia's building. Her smile faded as she looked at him and she got up. Walking past him, she closed the door and then took his hand and led him over to her bed where she pulled him down to sit beside her. When she wrapped her arms around him, Finnick cried.

Pressing his face into her soft hair, his arms went around her thin waist and he cried until his chest ached. Mags stroked his hair rhythmically. "I'm sorry." She whispered, "I'm sorry that I couldn't protect you."

Finnick ended up lying on the bed with his head in Mags' lap as she continued to stroke his hair.

"Did she hurt you?" She asked softly, her fingers moving slowly through his hair, making it stick up in all directions.

"No." He replied, blinking as a tear dripped from his cheek into Mags' skirt. "... It's worse when they fuck with your head." He breathed.

"What did she do?"

He was hesitant in answering, but if he could tell anybody, it would be Mags. "She was wearing a wig to make herself look like Annie." He murmured. Mags' fingers halted in their movement for a moment before continuing.

"I see." She said softly.

A fresh wave of tears started when images of Claudia leaning back with her hands on his knees as she moved only her hips flashed before his eyes. He could still vividly see the contrast between her pale flesh and the long dark hair falling in uneven waves and sticking to her damp skin. Her wanton cries rang in his ears as she commanded him to touch her and he'd run a hand up her stomach and between her breasts, only causing those cries to become louder.

Mags' fingers continued to move through his hair soothingly. "I'm so sorry." She whispered. "My poor boy." Her other hand started rubbing gentle circles on his back.

"You were right about Annie, weren't you?" he said, "Or that wig would never have bothered me."

"It's easy to see you've become more attached to her than the others." She replied softly.

"She treats me like a person." He told her, sniffing again. "She actually sees me. Not just 'Finnick Odair', but _me_."

"I know." Mags said gently.

"I don't want her to die." He whispered.

"I know." Mags answered, now smoothing his hair down slowly. After a moment, she spoke again. "It's nearly two. You just have time to grab something to eat and then you need to prepare her for her interview."

"Is Torsti prepared for his?" He murmured.

"I think so." She replied, "He's not easily rattled."

"Do you think Annie will be?"

"No. I don't think it will pose much of a problem for her. She's clever." She said simply, "I think she'll be fine."

"Me too." He said, sitting up and wiping his face on his sleeve. He then looked at Mags. "Thanks, Mags. I love you."

She kissed his forehead as she got to her feet. "I love you, too. Now, come and eat."

* * *

Annie had just cleaned her plate off when Mags and Finnick entered the Dining Room. "You'd better hurry." She said, "Before Torsti scoffs everything."

"Hey." Torsti replied, "I'll need it for when we're in the arena." He put another roll on his plate.

Annie raised an eyebrow at him, then watched Mags dish herself some cold meats.

"Well, you did return afterall, Finnick." Pansy said, folding her napkin neatly onto her empty plate. "I was just about to suggest to Annie that she go to Mags for her Interview preparation... as it seemed like you would be too busy."

"I'm here." Finnick said, his green eyes turning on Annie, "I promised."

"Yes, well, good." Pansy commented, getting to her feet. "Torsti, when you are done eating the entire table, I will be in the Sitting Room."

"Okay." Torsti replied, biting into his roll. Annie then watched Pansy walk carefully out of the room.

"If you're done, we could get started." Finnick said to her, and Annie turned to look at him.

"You haven't eaten."

"Doesn't matter." He replied.

"Please, eat."

He picked up a roll and looked at her.

"You know, what? I'm not done." She said, taking a piece of meat off a platter. "I'm staying here." She looked at him as she bit into it.

He smiled and put more food onto his plate. Annie ate her piece of meat as slowly as she could, already stuffed full. When she noticed Mags watching her, she gave a small smile. The woman smiled back and then returned her attention to her own food.

When Finnick had finished what was on his plate, Annie stretched. "Okay, now I'm done." She said. She grinned when he looked at her and smiled.

"Then, let us prepare." He answered, getting to his feet. She followed him up the hallway until he stopped at the door to his room. "I think it might be better to do it in my room..."

"Why?"

"Somewhere you're not as comfortable as in your own. You'll probably be uncomfortable on stage in front of the cameras and audience..."

"Okay."

He opened the door and let her in. She followed him inside and then stood there while he closed the door behind them. "Have a seat..." he said, gesturing at the room. Annie looked around. The room was nearly identical to her own. She chose one of the chairs by the wall and sat down. Finnick then pulled a chair over to face hers before he sat down, looking at her. She looked back at him, her eye catching on the bizarre way his hair was sticking up.

"How was the morning with Pansy?" he asked, resting his chin on his hand.

_Probably better than your morning, _she thought.

"It wasn't too bad." She replied, shrugging. "I could already do most of the stuff she wanted to teach me."

"Like walking in those shoes of hers?"

"Yeah." She smiled. He smiled back, his chin still in his hand. Annie felt her cheeks grow warm. He laughed softly and she looked away. "So this interview..." she began.

"Yeah..." he sat back in his chair. "Caesar is pretty good." He told her. She looked at him and he nodded. "He's an okay guy, and he always tries to help the tributes through the process. He'll make it as easy as he can."

"That doesn't sound too bad."

"It's not as bad as some people think it is. You just have to play to the crowd."

"Play to them? How?"

"Most people go up there with an angle..."

"Yeah, I've seen that. People trying to pretend to be something... sexy or whatever."

"Exactly."

She frowned. "I don't really think I can do that."

He shook his head. "You're not going to."

"No?"

"You don't need to."

She blinked, confused. "I don't?"

"No." He smiled again. "You have a natural allure." Annie tilted her head, looking at him. "The only thing you need to worry about is making yourself memorable. That's one disadvantage we have being from District Four. Because we go in order of Districts, we're not exactly first, so we don't have that to stick in people's minds, and by the time they get to District Twelve they've been through so many tributes that we're forgotten."

"Okay. I need to make them remember me." She blinked "How do I do that?"

"Leave them wanting to know more..." He replied, running a hand through his hair. "Entice them... Tell them some things, but not others..." He smiled. "If you don't know what to say... Just be mysterious."

"So, that's my angle. Mystery. Secrets."

"Secrets are useful." He replied.

"Okay." She nodded, twisting the green lock of hair around her finger. "That should be easy enough."

"Good...Also, He's probably going to ask you about me." He bit his lip and Annie just looked at him.

"What about you?" She asked slowly.

"About how people think we're..." She didn't miss his eyes look her up and down.

"Right... so... do you want me to deny it?"

"That's up to you..." He replied softly. Annie chewed the inside of her cheek, watching him.

"I don't think so." She replied after a moment. "You're the one who is going to have to live with the consequences." He frowned, looking at her. "I'm just being realistic." She said. "If you don't want people to think you'd screw your tributes, tell me."

"Don't..." he breathed, closing his eyes. "Don't worry about what people will think of me. Worry about how it will make you look. You need people to want to sponsor you. What people think of you when you walk off that stage may mean the difference between you living or dying in the arena." He looked at her intently. "I don't care what you say. Just make yourself memorable. You can't hurt me. Not that way."

Annie nodded. "Okay." She tucked the green hair behind her ear. "What do you think I should say?"

"Well... People seem to find it amusing..." he looked at her, "I think you should use it."

"Right..."

"If you want to." He said, "With what your family will think and all..."

"You promised me that you'll tell them it isn't true..."

"And I will."

"Then it doesn't concern me." She folded her arms. "I'll say whatever I have to."

"Good." He leaned toward her, and Annie watched him. "Do you want to practice?"

"Some questions?"

"Yeah." He suddenly sat up straight and gave her a very Caesar Flickerman smile. Annie immediately laughed it was that recognisable. Finnick didn't bat an eye. "So, here we have the gorgeous Annie Cresta from District Four!" he said loudly, "Tell me, Annie, are you nervous?"

Annie sat up straighter, making sure to correct her posture like Pansy had been reminding her to do all morning. "No, Caesar." She replied brightly, "I think that the Victor's crown will suit me very well..."

Finnick gave a real smile, and then resumed his imitation of Caesar. "I'm sure it will. How do you find the other tributes? Are there any there that really concern you?"

She thought for a moment, not really sure what to say. "Well, I'm more interested in how I concern them..."

"Good!" Finnick grinned "Perfect!"

She smiled, "You basically want me to be a smartarse."

"A polite one." He winked at her. "Okay, let's talk about me."

She nodded. "Okay."

"So..." he said, giving her his Caesar smile again. "Finnick Odair is your mentor..."

"Yes."

He gave her a look and she raised an eyebrow. "How have you found it?" he asked.

Annie blinked, "It has been quite the experience..." she said slowly.

"How so?" He asked her, grinning. She scowled at him. "You can't scowl at Caesar."

"I'm not scowling at Caesar." She retorted, "I'm scowling at you."

"Answer the question."

"I don't know what to say..."

"Okay, what did we say you do when you don't have an answer?"

"Be mysterious..."

"Good... so... it's been quite the experience... how so?"

Annie frowned for a second. "Well, Caesar..." She began, "I don't think it would be polite to say too much..."

"Yes." Finnick nodded, "The crowd will love answers like that. Especially about me."

Annie just looked at him. People were using him all the time and she didn't want to be one of them. The thought must have shown on her face because he suddenly leaned forward again.

"No, I know what you're thinking." He shook his head, looking at her.

"But you..."

"No." He said firmly. "It's not the same."

"Is it not?"

"No." He replied, taking her hand gently. "For one thing, I like you." He told her, "I want to help you. You keep asking me about it, giving me options out, and it just validates my reasons for wanting to even more."

Annie looked between his face and her hand in his. His thumb rubbed the back of her hand softly.

"What reason is that?" She asked quietly.

"You see me as a person." He replied, "Not an object."

"You are a person..." she said, blinking.

He raised her hand to his lips. "And you're gorgeous."

Annie felt her cheeks flush again and she watched as he sat back in his chair once more. "Okay, Gorgeous." He said, "Let's answer some more questions."

* * *

Author's Note:

Reviews are love. Or, are they air? Either way... They're essential.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

Annie didn't end up having to spend all day with Lena and her Prep team. She'd been very relieved when Pansy had told her that they wouldn't even need to see her until after lunch. She'd therefore spent the morning in her room, practicing all kinds of answers to any question she could think of that it seemed plausible that Caesar Flickerman could ask her.

By the time Annie saw Lena, she was mumbling to herself, trying to keep her answers straight in her head. She focused on what she'd say if asked about home when she was put into her dress, she focused on the other tributes while her makeup was done, and she thought about the arena itself while her hair was brushed and done up. It was then quite a surprise when she was turned to face a mirror to see herself after paying no attention to what had been going on around her.

Annie's hands moved over the black velvet bodice of the dress and down over the translucent green and purple flowing skirt. It was possibly the most gorgeous dress she'd ever seen. Turning her eyes on Lena, she smiled.

"Did you make this?" She asked her stylist softly.

"I certainly did."

"It's... beautiful. It's more than beautiful. Wow..."

"It is." Lena answered, looking the dress over with obvious pride. "I'm glad that you like it. It suits you well." Annie stroked the skirt of the dress slowly as she looked again into the mirror. It went all the way to her feet, so she'd need to be careful not to trip over herself on stage. Lena moved behind her and tied a thin black ribbon around her throat. "There." Her stylist said gently. "You're complete."

"I wouldn't have thought you'd use black..." Annie murmured, "You look like you prefer light colours."

"And so I do." Lena nodded, "But the other tributes are all likely to be brightly dressed. You may be the only one in black, and with your dark hair it makes you look very... mysterious."

Annie smiled at her. "Thank you." She said, wondering when it was that Finnick had had time to discuss her interview angle with Lena.

"Right, well, my job here is done..." She said, opening the door. "Follow me and I'll show you where you line up."

Annie followed the woman out the door, being careful to hold her dress above her feet. Lena led her down the narrow hallway and then after a short elevator ride, down another hallway. Turning to her, her stylist said, "Just around this corner you should find the other tributes. I'm off to take my seat with the other stylists."

"Okay, thank you." Annie nodded, trying to ignore how her heart started to thud quickly against her ribcage. Other tributes. She'd forgotten that she had to face them first. When Lena turned and left, Annie went around the corner. About half the other tributes were already there, dressed in impressive finery. Some were talking to their mentors, no doubt trying to glean some last minute advice. Torsti was not yet present, so Annie stood by the wall, looking at the others. The tributes from District Three were nearby, as were the two from Districts Five and Six. Aidan hadn't yet noticed her, so she leaned back against the wall hoping that he wouldn't. Further down the hallway were the tributes from Districts Eleven and Twelve. Annie watched the beautiful girl from District Eleven for a few moments. She'd learned that her name was Sage. She jumped slightly when Sage's eyes suddenly met hers. The girl gave a small smile, and Annie smiled back.

Aidan suddenly slid in front of her, blocking her view of Sage.

"Looking good, Annie." He said, his pale blue eyes looking her over. Annie shuddered. "This is the last time we'll be able to speak before we're in the arena..."

"Fancy that." She replied simply.

"Mm..." He stepped closer and Annie pushed herself back harder into the wall. "I'll look for you at the Cornucopia." He breathed in her ear. Annie's stomach twisted unpleasantly, and then suddenly Aidan was pulled away from her.

"Don't bother." Finnick's voice said coldly as he shoved the boy away. She watched Aidan try to regain his balance and then glare at them.

"We'll see..." he said, turning and walking away.

"Should you have done that?" Annie asked Finnick quietly when people began to give them looks.

"Absolutely." He replied, his green eyes looking her over. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." She nodded, standing up straight. She looked at him to see him looking her over more slowly this time, a smile forming on his face. When his eyes met hers she felt herself blush lightly and she quickly looked away. Lumina gave her a friendly wave across the hallway as she and Maverick arrived. Annie smiled in return.

* * *

Finnick watched Annie smile at the blonde girl from District One. "The dress works well." He told her when she met his gaze once more. "Lena did a good job."

"She did." Annie replied and he watched as she ran a hand down the dress, stroking the velvet with the tips of her fingers. He clasped his hands behind his back to prevent himself reaching out to do the same.

"Are you nervous?" He asked, smiling softly "Do you feel okay?"

Annie let out a sigh. "My heart is trying to hack its way out of my chest." She replied softly, "Here, feel..." She touched his arm and he gave her the hand she sought. He then watched helplessly as she lifted his hand to rest against her chest. He could easily feel her heartbeat. He heart was fluttering quickly; it reminded him of a small bird caught in a net. _Again with the nets,_ he thought bitterly. "Do you feel it?" She asked, and he nodded, meeting her green eyes with his own.

"Breathe." He told her. "Just breathe." He felt her take a slow deep breath as her chest rose beneath his hand. He quickly retracted it.

"Where will you be?" Annie asked him after a moment.

"I'll be waiting for you when the interviews are over." He told her and she nodded slowly, biting her lower lip.

"And during?" she asked.

"In a section with the other mentors..."

"Will I be able to see you...?" She looked up and he could easily see the nervousness in her eyes.

"Maybe." He replied, "And certainly when they broadcast a shot of me on the screens..."

"Right." She nodded.

"Don't be so nervous." He smiled reassuringly at her. "We practiced so many questions. You were so good."

She nodded again and took another deep breath. "Okay. I'm good." He watched her run both hands down her dress. Was that how she calmed herself down? It was then that Torsti approached them. Finnick stepped away from Annie.

"Alright, Torsti is here now. I have to go to where I'm meant to be. You'll be great. It'll be fine."

"Okay, Finnick."

"Breathe." He told her. She nodded.

He checked to make sure that the creepy Aidan kid from District Seven wasn't anywhere near her before he turned and hurried back up the hallway and out to the seating reserved for the mentors.

* * *

"What was he saying?" Torsti asked Annie who blinked, looking up at him.

"What?" she asked, "Oh, he was just telling me not to be nervous."

"I see..."

Annie nodded as they were informed that the interviews were starting and Lumina was escorted to the edge of the stage. Annie watched her. The girl was absolutely flawless, it was near impossible to believe that she could be in any way dangerous. That in itself was a danger.

She spent her time waiting by listening intently to what the other tributes had to say. It was all pretty standard. They were in awe of The Capitol. They hoped to win. Etcetera.

When Varen was done, it was her turn. Making sure not to trip on her dress, Annie headed for Caesar Flickerman who was holding a hand out to her in the centre of the stage. It was the first time she'd gotten a glimpse of him in person, and she couldn't help staring a little at the deep red hair he was sporting this year. He almost looked as if he were bleeding. It was a little off-putting.

"Annie Cresta!" he said loudly when she reached him and took his hand. He led her carefully to her seat and she sat gracefully, being mindful of her posture so as not to receive a lecture from Pansy later in the evening.

"So, Annie..." Caesar began, giving her one of his wide smiles. "Tell us about home. You're from District Four and we know that means that you can probably catch fish... but what about your home specifically can you tell us?"

"Well..." Annie began, "My home isn't that interesting. I don't have any brothers or sisters. It's just me and my parents in my house..." She blinked, hearing Finnick's voice in her head telling her to make herself memorable. Seem mysterious. She couldn't talk about home. "I'm afraid everybody would find it rather dull."

"I doubt that you could ever be dull." Caesar said, before looking to the crowd. "Am I right?" They all cheered, but he changed angles all the same. "Are you prepared for the Games, Annie?"

"Oh, yes." She smiled slyly, "I'm more than prepared."

"Are you? Can you tell us about that?"

"I don' think I can, Caesar." She said, trying to sound regretful. "You'll just have to wait and see like everybody else."

He laughed. "How about your competitors?" He asked, "Is there anyone that you think may pose the biggest threat to you?"

"Well," Annie tilted her head, "I think the people that are the biggest threat are the ones that make you think they're not. The ones who don't look like they could really do some damage." She smiled at him.

"And you'd know about that, I'd bet..." He looked to the audience. "Do you think she's telling us a secret here?" Annie looked out at the sea of colours. The crowd were screaming their agreement and she forced another smile. Her heart now felt like it was trying to force its way out through the front of her throat. "Okay, okay... Annie. You've had several days of training here. How have they gone?"

"I've learned all kinds of new things." She gave another sly smile.

"I'll bet you have." He said, leaning toward her. Annie also leaned forward as if to hear what he wanted to say. "Finnick Odair is one of your mentors." He said.

"Yes, he is." She replied simply.

"Has he been helping you with your training?" He asked. Annie wanted to roll her eyes. This was it. She could say what Caesar was so openly giving her the opportunity to and make the audience remember her, or she could ignore it and just see how things went.

"Every night." She answered, her voice low. The crowd whistled.

"Every night?" Caesar asked, sounding impressed. "But you've only been here a few days. Surely you couldn't learn much in such a hurry?"

"Oh, Finnick is never in a hurry." She replied, glancing at the crowd. "Everything he does is very... intensive." The crowd lost their minds, screaming and cheering.

"And what has that been like?" Caesar asked her.

"Well, Caesar... quite exhausting. Like nothing I've ever experienced before."

"I think we can believe that." Caesar said, taking Annie's hand. Her eyes caught on his blood red hair again as he helped her to her feet. "Everybody, Annie Cresta!"

Annie gave a wave to the crowd and then carefully headed off the stage to sit with the others who had completed their interviews. She took her seat just as Torsti reached Caesar. She felt dirty. It felt like such a cheap thing to do, but Finnick had said that she should use it. She was fairly certain that people would remember who she was now. Sure, they were probably under the impression that she was some slut from District Four, but if they handed over money it could keep her alive. The only people whose opinions mattered to her were her family's and Finnick had promised he'd sort that out for her if she didn't get to herself.

Tomorrow, she would be in the arena. It was time she stopped second guessing everything she did and started to focus on using what she could to stay alive.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thank you all for the kind reviews. They make me happy.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

Finnick blinked when he discovered that Annie wasn't in her room. Looking at the clock, he frowned when he saw that it was just after nine. Confused, he looked around. He headed to the Dining and Sitting rooms, searching for her. "Annie?" he called, not finding her in either. "...Annie?"

He'd planned to be waiting for her as soon as the Tributes were allowed to leave the interviews, but he'd been waylaid by one of his 'acquaintances' and had been delayed. He had expected her to be in her room when he'd returned, though. Where was she?

He hurried back up the hallway and checked her room again. "Annie?" he breathed, turning and hurrying back out. He went across the hall and knocked on Torsti's door.

When the blond boy opened the door, Finnick pushed in. "Is Annie in here?" he demanded, looking around.

"No? What?"

"She's not?" Finnick checked the bathroom and then looked at Torsti who was still standing by the door.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for Annie." Finnick replied, walking past him on his way out the door.

"Why?" Torsti called after him, but Finnick ignored him as he ran down the hallway.

Apparently Mags had heard him as her door opened as he approached and she stepped slowly into the hallway. "Have you seen Annie?" He asked, coming to a stop before her. "I can't find her..." He ran a hand through his hair, trying not to panic. What if that creep from District Seven had managed to get a hold of her somewhere?

"Yes..." Mags answered simply, and Finnick blinked.

"You have? Where is she?" he asked, hearing the desperation in his own voice. Mags looked him over, and he could easily see her deciding if she should tell him or not. "Come on, Mags, please..." he breathed, "She'll be in the arena tomorrow..."

"She was upset." Mags told him after a moment. "She wanted somewhere quiet and private..."

He blinked, waiting. "...Yes?" he asked when he got no more than that.

"I told her she could go up to the roof..."

"Thanks, Mags." He said, quickly kissing her cheek and then taking off toward the elevators. He'd pushed the button for the roof before the doors had even closed and then waited impatiently. The second they opened he was hit with the surprisingly warm night air. Stepping out, he looked around the roof. Annie wasn't on this side. Walking around the other side of the dome to the garden, he had to look more carefully as the potted trees and garden beds cast all kinds of shadows that could easily conceal someone of Annie's size.

He heard her before he saw her. As he moved toward the sound, she slowly came into view. She was sitting at the base of one of the larger trees, with her knees bent and her arms wrapped around them, quite obviously crying. Finnick walked slowly over and then sat himself down beside her without saying a word. He heard her breath catch as she realised that somebody was now beside her, but she didn't look up from where her face was hidden in the massive skirt of her dress, pressed against her knees.

"Hey, Annie..." he said softly.

"Hey, Finn." She murmured, still not looking up. He looked at her. When had she started calling him that?

"Are you okay?" he asked, reaching out to touch her arm lightly.

"I don't know." She answered, finally lifting her head. The garden wasn't lit, but in the faint glow from the surrounding city he could see her face. She'd obviously been crying for a while as her eyes were puffy even in the dull light, and the makeup she'd been wearing for the interview had run leaving black streaks right down her cheeks. She wiped at her face self-consciously, but she made no effect on the makeup. "I probably look hideous." She murmured.

"No." He replied, tucking a piece of hair that had come loose from the fancy style Lena had put it in, back behind her ear. She looked at him doubtfully, but let it go.

They sat in silence for a while, just watching the wind shake the leaves of the surrounding trees and listening to the sound the wind chimes hanging from the branches made. Finnick took off his jacket, not needing it in the warm night. Eventually he spoke up.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't waiting for you like I'd said I would be."

"It's okay." She replied softly. "I assumed that you were... sidetracked."

"You did very well in the interview." He told her, waning to change the subject. "You were very memorable."

"The whole of Panem now thinks I'm a slut." She replied flatly.

"Welcome to my world." He regretted saying it when she turned to him, looking horrified.

"I'm sorry..." She breathed, looking like she might cry again.

"No..." He put an arm around her. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that you're here, that you had to resort to saying things like that to get sponsors, that you have so much more to face yet... and I'm sorry that this had to happen for me to meet you." He watched her look at him again, blinking silently. "It's been years since anybody I've met has treated me like you do... since anybody could be my friend."

"People don't treat you well, do they?" she asked, raising her eyes to the sky. "It's strange. Everybody thinks you're so happy..."

"That's what they're supposed to think." He replied.

She looked at him again. "It's sad."

"Yeah, well... don't tell anyone." He murmured.

"Who am I going to tell?" she replied softly, "I'm going to die tomorrow."

"You're not!" he said sharply, and she jumped. "Annie, please..." his voice was more gentle this time. "Please..."

"Please what?" she asked, her voice barely audible above the tinkling of the wind chimes.

"Try..."

"Of course I'm going to try." She said, "But that doesn't mean I'm delusional. If I'm lucky I'll get into the final eight. Or, is that unlucky? If I do, my parents will be dragged before cameras... and probably asked what they think about me screwing you." She sighed, "And then I'll die anyway. And that will have been for nothing."

"Why don't you think you can win...?" He asked gently.

"I've seen them training..." She replied.

"You can outsmart them." He told her. "You're clever... I know that you can win."

"Can I win without killing anyone?"

Finnick was silent. "No..." he eventually replied.

Annie wiped her face again. "Yeah, well..."

"...is that why you're up here?" he murmured. She sniffed.

"Yes." She nodded slowly. "I want to win. I don't want to die... and I know that when it comes to it, I'll do whatever I have to do to survive... but, I don't want to kill anyone. That's not me..."

Finnick tightened his arm around her, pulling her closer. He felt her rest her head against his shoulder and he closed his eyes. "Think of it as separate." He said quietly. "Who you are in the arena is not who you are as a person."

"Is it not?" she asked.

"Do you think I'm a killer?" he asked, "Is that how you see me?"

"...No." she replied

"There you go, then." He murmured, "I killed seven people in the arena."

"Seven?" she asked softly. "I didn't know it was so many..."

"Yeah." He stroked his hand down her arm slowly. "You keep it separate."

"Okay."

They sat in silence again, and Finnick listened to the partying going on down in the streets. He was just about to ask her if she wanted to go back inside when he noticed that she was crying again.

"Annie...?"

She just shook her head, her hands covering her face. Not getting any more of a response than that, he frowned. "Okay, time to go back in." He said, turning and lifting her into his arms. She just cried, not even acknowledging the fact that she was being carried back indoors. Finnick managed to press the button for the fourth floor and then just stood, holding Annie as the elevator took them back down. When they reached their floor, he carried her back to her room. Taking her inside, he headed for her bathroom where he sat her gently upon the counter by the sink. He bent to retrieve a washcloth from a drawer and then wet it under the tap. "Annie, we're going to wash this mess off, okay..." He said softly, gently pulling her hands away from her face. When he could see what he was doing as her hands now rested in her lap, he gently began to wipe the makeup off her face. She just watched him with bloodshot eyes that made the green stand out even more than usual.

"Do you want to tell me what it is?" he asked softly.

"Nothing..." she breathed, "...Everything." She watched him silently for a moment. "I can't help it."

He nodded. That wasn't unusual. He rinsed the washcloth when he'd gotten all the makeup off of her and then set it aside to dry.

"What's this?" she asked, touching his wrist. Finnick looked down to see the rope bracelet that he wore to remind himself of home.

"Something I made." He replied softly.

"It's pretty." She said.

"Thanks."

"It's from home?"

"Yeah. I made it so that I had something from home with me whenever I come here."

"That makes sense..." She nodded and he looked at her. "Thank you." She said, "For... everything." She shook her head. "That doesn't even cover it."

"You don't have to thank me." He replied.

"But I want to."

"Okay, well... You're welcome."

He watched her look at him, her eyes moving slowly over him and he couldn't quite read the expression on her face. She suddenly frowned, reaching forward she turned his jaw to the side with two fingers. Finnick's eyes went immediately to the mirror behind her and to the angry red scratches up the side of his throat; courtesy of one of his acquaintances. The small sound she made had him shaking his head.

"It's nothing." He said dismissively. The cold look in her eyes silenced him.

"That wasn't an accident, was it?"

"No." He replied. It was pretty much standard with that particular acquaintance.

"Do you have more?" she asked, meeting his eyes again. He nodded. "Where?"

He pushed his sleeves up to reveal similar scratches up his forearms. "and my back." He added expressionlessly. Annie's eyes slowly filled with tears as she looked at him and she started to shake.

"No... hey, no. Don't you do that." He said, brushing the hair back from her face. "Don't you cry for me."

She murmured something he couldn't quite make out.

"You're going into the arena in the morning." He told her, "Worry about you. Not me."

"I'm going to cry anyway." She sobbed, "So, it's not really out of my way..."

"Well, it hurts me." He told her, wiping her face with the washcloth once more. "I don't like it at all."

Her fingers lightly traced the scratches up his left arm. "Do they do this often?"

"Some," he replied simply. She just looked at him, the horror clear upon her face. He simply picked her back up and carried her out into her room where he sat her down upon her bed.

"You're not leaving, are you?" she asked softly.

"Do you not want me to?"

"No..." She replied, looking up at him. "I don't want you to."

He sat beside her. "Then I'm not." He was surprised when she took his hand gently.

"I won't see you in the morning, will I?" she asked and he shook his head.

"No." He said, "Lena will be going with you..."

She turned to look at him and this time he had no problem reading the fear in her eyes. "I'm scared, Finn..."

He hugged her. "I know. Me too."

"Why?"

"I want you to come back." He told her.

"Oh."

He rubbed her back gently in small circles. "Please."

"I'll try." She murmured, resting her forehead against his shoulder.

They sat that way for a long time. Finnick didn't want to leave, but he knew that Annie needed to get as much rest as she could. Reluctantly, he spoke up. "You need to sleep, Annie."

She looked up, meeting his eyes. Fear and sadness, now.

"I know." She replied softly.

He slowly got to his feet, and she moved with him, not letting go of his hand. He looked at her, stroking his other hand down her hair. "This could be the last time I see you..." she murmured, looking up at him. He just nodded. He watched her consider something, looking rather indecisive. She then raised a hand to his cheek and he shifted closer instinctively. She stroked his cheek for a moment before her hand slipped around to the back of his neck and she went up on her toes, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips.

"Sorry..." she breathed, having stepped back then. "That was probably selfish of me..."

"No..." he said softly. "It wasn't."

She ran a hand through her hair, just looking at him. She looked so unsure and doubtful that he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her one last time. "Goodluck..." he breathed. She nodded. "Annie... Don't trust District Two."

She nodded again and he let her go, looking at her. "Stay alive, Annie Cresta."

"I will." She breathed.

Finnick knew he had to move. Forcing himself, he bent and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before turning away and heading for the door. He didn't let himself look back when opened the door and slipped out, but the moment it closed behind him he heard her cry.

* * *

Reviews are love. Thanks.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

Annie scratched at her arm where the Capitol woman had injected her tracker. She didn't like the thought that something like that was inside her at all. She didn't speak while Lena got her ready. Looking at the lightweight suit she'd been given, she wondered what kind of terrain she was about to be lifted into.

"Stop that." Lena told her when Annie kept scratching. "You'll break the skin."

Sighing, Annie dropped her hand down beside herself.

Instead, she fiddled with the material of the suit. Too many thoughts were going through her head for her to focus on just one. In just minutes she would be in the arena. She would be fighting for her life. She may die. She'd kissed Finnick. She would probably never see him again. She would probably never see her parents again. She hoped that she had sponsors. Were her sponsors rich enough? Finnick hadn't kissed her back. Had she insulted him? What if Torsti died in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia? What if Aidan got a hold of her? Could she kill someone if she had to? She hadn't meant to insult Finnick. Why had she kissed him? What if the arena was a giant desert? What if there was no water? What if there were no weapons and they were forced to bludgeon one another to death with rocks?

"Annie!"

Annie looked up at Lena, blinking in surprise. "Yes?"

"You need to get into the tube."

"Oh..." She looked at the tube nearby. Once she set foot in that she wouldn't be coming out of the arena unless she won. Her breath caught in her throat. She forced herself to step toward it and get inside. Then, she turned to face Lena.

"Finnick told me to tell you something before you went in." Lena said to her, and Annie's eyes widened.

"What?" she asked, desperation in her voice. "What did he say?"

"Breathe."

Annie took a deep breath and then the tube closed and she was sealed off from Lena. She forced herself to take another breath and watched as Lena smiled at her and placed her hand against the glass. Annie was surprised and slightly touched by that. It suggested the woman cared, when Annie hadn't thought she did. She'd just placed her own hand against the glass against Lena's when she was being lifted. Giving her stylist one last look, Annie then turned her attention to the world above her.

Sunlight momentarily blinded her. Blinking, she looked around. Like usual, the other tributes were all situated on little platforms at equidistant points from the Cornucopia. She watched as Jarek, who was next to her, quickly surveyed the positions of everyone he could. She tried to do the same. Torsti, she discovered, was about five tributes over from her, and Aidan was on the other side of him. That was good, at least. It was then she realised that she was again holding her breath.

"Breathe." She reminded herself, taking a deep breath and turning her attention to the arena itself. They were in a small field. A short distance away was the Cornucopia with all kinds of things around it. Beyond that, were small wooden buildings. It rather looked like a dilapidated town. There had to be ten little houses there. In the other direction was a forest leading up to an impressive rockface. Turning her eyes upward, she tried to look to the top. It would take hours just to scale that thing. There had to be something useful up there.

Annie was jolted out of her observations as the countdown began. Resisting the urge to die right on the spot, Annie steeled herself. She looked around again, eyes flicking in all directions as she tried to decide what to do. _Out_, she thought, _I need to get out. _Even as a part of the Career Alliance, she wouldn't stand much chance of surviving the bloodbath. She would have to run and meet up with them later.

_14, 13, 12, 11, 10..._

Her eyes landed on the houses beyond the Cornucopia. She could hide there. It was unlikely that the other tributes fleeing would head there as it would clearly be somewhere the Careers would claim for themselves and the rest of them would want to steer clear of them for as long as possible. Yes. The houses would do well.

_9, 8, 7, 6, 5..._

Forcing air into her lungs, Annie tried to even her breathing which was becoming panicked. As soon as the countdown ended, she would run. Straight for the houses and find herself somewhere to hide. No exceptions. She wouldn't look around at what was going on. She would just go. Looking to her left, she saw Davos, the little boy from District Eight. Would he survive the bloodbath?

_4, 3, 2, 1..._

Annie bolted. The instant she could leave her platform she hit the ground running. Dodging to avoid the girl from District Five, Annie then leaped over her when the girl suddenly went down, her injury not apparent to Annie who was already landing on the other side of her and still running.

* * *

Finnick strode into the Mentors' Station five minutes before the Games were due to begin. "Hey Odair!" Chaff said, grinning at him as he entered, "Your first year old enough to not be a tribute!"

"Yeah." He replied, nodding as his eyes scanned the room for Mags. He spotted her over by the District Four table and headed for her, giving Chaff an acknowledging smile as he passed him.

The Mentors' Station was set up with a giant screen on one wall for watching all the 'Live to Air' action of the Games and where they could see what was bring broadcast to the country. The rest of the room was filled with a station for each District. Each of these stations had two screens; one for each tribute. It made it easy for the mentors to track their tributes and keep on top of their difficulties.

"We're on in Three." Mags murmured when he reached their station.

"Okay." He helped her to her feet, and then over toward the large screen. It was easier to watch the bloodbath this way as so much of the action was taking place in one spot. Finnick helped Mags to a seat on one of the soft couches facing the screen, and then took a seat on the arm rest beside her.

"Here we go..." Haymitch murmured, already taking a swig of what looked to be White Liquor from his bottle. Finnick frowned and looked to the screen where the tributes were coming up into the arena.

"What do we have this year?" he asked, trying to take in as much of the arena as he could see.

"Some run down little town it looks like." Cashmere commented from her position on the other end of the couch.

"There's a forest, too." Seeder put in. "And some kind of cliff..."

"Yeah." Haymitch added. "They'll be climbing that for sure."

"What's up there?" Finnick asked, looking at the rocks on screen.

"Probably something essential." Haymitch replied, "Like water."

"Looks like a dam." Mags muttered and Finnick nodded.

"They'll be fighting over it, then." He said, falling silent when a shot of Annie filled the screen. He watched her eyes move over the arena, taking everything in.

"Breathe." She murmured, clearly trying to calm herself down. He guessed that Lena had delivered his final message, then. He'd have to remember to thank her.

"What advice for surviving the bloodbath did you give to your little tribute, Odair?" Brutus asked roughly. "...during your little training sessions of a night?"

Finnick would have rolled his eyes if it hadn't meant looking away from Annie. "She's not stupid." He replied simply. _Run, Annie _he thought, _Run. _How fast was she? He didn't think he'd ever asked her that. He watched her ready herself and then she was replaced with the boy from District Twelve and Haymitch started swearing under his breath and drinking again.

Mags' hand found his as the countdown neared zero. They were given a wide angle shot of the tributes all on their metal circles as the gong ran out, and Finnick scanned quickly for Annie.

"She can run." Mags commented softly, and Finnick spotted Annie then. She was sprinting swiftly across the field. He watched her leap over a girl who fell with an arrow in her back and keep going. For a horrible second he thought that she was actually heading for the Cornucopia, but then she'd passed it and she showed no signs of slowing down.

The wide angle shot was replaced with more individual shots now as close-ups of the first wave of killing were broadcast. Finnick got up and headed back to the District Four station to keep an eye on Annie. She was heading for the houses, he realised. She intended to hide.

Satisfied, he looked back to the big screen. Torsti, it quickly became apparent, was exceptionally good at killing. Finnick watched him cut down the boy from District Ten with no more effort than one would expend when swatting a fly. The blonde girl from District One was also rather good, he noticed. Annie had said she liked the girl. What was her name? Lumina? He watched as Lumina took on the boy from District Eleven. The boy was probably six feet in height, but within minutes Lumina had cut his throat. He heard Chaff muttering some choice swear words under his breath and then join Haymitch in a drink.

Finnick stared at the screen in what came close to horror as the girl From District Two with the unnerving eyes hacked the girl from District Nine to pieces. Overkill. That's what it was. She didn't stop until the body was completely dismembered, and then she just moved on to the next closest person. Flicking a glance at Enobaria and Brutus, Finnick raised an eyebrow. Neither of them looked in the least bit surprised.

He returned his attention to the screen just in time to watch the girl from District Ten have her guts spilled all over the field. So, District Ten was the first to lose both Tributes this year. He watched as the twelve year old boy from District Eight disappeared into the trees on the far side of the field and Cecelia, who was sitting nearby, gave a loud sigh of relief. Screaming from the screen was heard even before the cameras focused on who it was coming from. Finnick frowned, watching as the cameras zoomed in nice and close, ready to capture every detail.

Aidan, the creepy boy from District Seven had the girl from District Twelve on the ground. Everybody in the Mentors' Station watched silently as he kicked her around repeatedly until she stopped trying to get away. He then forced her onto her back and pinned her to the ground with his own weight. She'd stopped screaming and was now just crying hysterically.

"Come on, Beth..." he drawled, placing a hand to her throat. "Did you think you were going to get away from me?"

"Please..." She cried, before her voice was choked off as Aidan tightened both hands around her throat and began to squeeze. She scratched at him, her legs starting to kick as she tried to get him off her, but it was clear that she was nowhere near strong enough. The cameras zoomed in again, getting a clear shot of her face as it turned from red to purple as she gasped. "Mum..." She choked out desperately. Tears ran down the sides of her face into her hair as she now made inaudible sounds until finally she went still, her eyes unfocused and glassy. Finnick blinked, his stomach twisting as Aidan pressed his lips to the dead girl's before climbing off of her. He dearly hoped that somebody would kill that son of a bitch before he got anywhere near Annie.

As Haymitch mumbled something about needing another drink while he walked out the door and disappeared into the hallway, Finnick noticed Woof comforting Cecelia who had started crying openly around the time the girl had started calling for her mother. Mags hauled herself up off the couch and slowly headed back to the District Four station to sit beside Finnick again. Sighing, Finnick returned his attention to Annie's screen.

He watched as Annie crept slowly between two of the small wooden buildings. She appeared to choose one as she turned a corner and headed for it. Finnick shook his head, watching as the boy from District Nine with the flaming red hair came out of nowhere before Annie had made it two steps. Clenching the arm of his chair, Finnick watched as the boy seized a handful of Annie's hair and threw her into the wall of the house. Her head struck the wood with a solid thump and she fell to the ground.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks to those people reviewing! I love you!


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen**

Annie hit the ground, dazed. Raising a hand to her head, she blinked, trying to clear her vision. She didn't have much of a chance, however, as hands grabbed her and hauled her to her feet before slamming her back into the house again. She screamed, unable to help herself. Someone's hand closed around her throat, choking off her scream and she blinked, trying to force herself to focus.

Mordred, the boy with the red hair that didn't suit his name. Annie blinked rapidly as her vision sharpened. The boy snarled at her. "Not much of a Career, Four." He said, "I didn't think you'd be so easy." Annie just choked, looking at him as he raised the hand around her throat, lifting her off her feet. She clawed at his hand, trying to breathe. "How is your wealthy District going to help you now?" he asked, "You Careers are so stupid. You think that just because you've practiced with fancy weapons that you're ready to just walk in here and win. You think screwing your Mentor did you any good? He's probably not even watching. More likely he's off with one of his Capitol Whores."

That pissed her off. She may not have been able to pry his hand from around her throat, but Annie had plenty of space to bring her knee up hard into his stomach. Startled, he dropped her, doubling over and gasping for air. Annie's feet hit the ground, quickly followed by her knees when they failed to support her. She massaged her throat, trying to get some air into her own lungs. "I know you're watching, Finnick." She murmured when she could once again breathe.

When Mordred came at her again, Annie dove to the left and rolled away, coming up on her feet. She was a dancer; she could easily out manoeuvre him if he wanted to play it that way. If he got a hold of her again like before she'd be in trouble though.

"Oh, find some fight in you, did you?" He asked, smirking at her.

Annie needed knives. She couldn't avoid him forever and sooner or later somebody else was going to show up and probably kill the both of them. She feigned to the right and he moved to block her. She quickly spun to the left and took off, sprinting down the narrow street lined with the small houses. Annie was fast, but apparently Mordred was faster. Before she knew he'd caught up with her, he'd seized her from behind and thrown her at the closest house. She tripped on the front steps and went sprawling over them into the dirt. He was on her in an instant. She gasped as he hauled her off the ground and moved to press her into the wall of the house. Annie lifted her feet and pressed them instead into the wall, pushing back into Mordred. She'd hoped she could knock him over, but he merely took a step back to regain his balance. He wrapped his arm firmly around her waist and lifted her to try again, but Annie dropped her head back into his face and he dropped her with a howl.

She turned quickly only to be slapped across the face and sent stumbling into the wall. She looked back to him once more, determined that if he was going to kill her, she would be staring him down when he did so. He'd just grabbed her by the hair when he suddenly blinked, his eyes going vacant before he fell to the ground at her feet. Annie gasped, leaning back against the wall and looking down at Mordred's dead body.

"Are you okay, Annie?" Torsti asked, pulling his knife from the dead boy's back. Annie just looked at him. "Annie?"

She nodded, sinking down to the ground and rubbing her sore throat. "I'm okay." She breathed. He knelt down in front of her, looking at her. He pulled her hand away from her throat and she watched him frown.

"That'll bruise." He replied. "Can you talk?"

Annie swallowed with a grimace. "I don't know..." she croaked.

"That's not too bad." He nodded. "Mostly bruised then."

Annie nodded, looking back at him. She was about to ask where the others were when they suddenly appeared behind Torsti, all smiling rather happily. They thought they'd done well, then. She wondered how many had been killed. Torsti pulled her to her feet when they reached them.

"So we get the shelter..." Maverick said, looking around, "Man, this is going to be easy."

"We should pick one." Inciness added. "Make sure it's clear before we search the others for useful things."

"Bring the supplies from the Cornucopia, too." Torsti replied, "Save them from being all out in the open."

The others all nodded and they headed into the small house Annie had been standing in front of.

* * *

Finnick let out a relieved sigh and closed his eyes when Mordred fell to the ground, dead. Mags stroked his hand that she'd been holding since the red headed boy had first grabbed Annie. For a moment he'd thought that it would be over for her so quickly. After seeing her fight, however, he felt a little better. She wasn't going to just lay down and die. She would fight the whole way. He'd been right about her. She had a strength about her that people, including herself, often didn't see.

"She's a survivor." He breathed, turning to look at Mags who nodded.

"She certainly seems like it." The woman replied gently.

He took another breath, trying to relax. She was okay. For now.

Returning his attention to the large screen, Finnick watched as the group searched the house they'd chosen as their base. There was nothing in there. The house was completely empty. There were several rooms on the ground floor, and then up a rickety staircase a single room upstairs.

"We can use this to keep watch." Torsti commented and the boy from District Two agreed.

"Why do we have houses?" Annie asked, and Finnick cringed at the strained croakiness of her voice. "I don't think I've ever seen shelter like this provided... We could be in for some dangerous weather..."

"Maybe there are meat eating predators out there..." Lumina put in and Annie nodded.

"Maybe it's simply to try and draw all the tributes to one area." Maverick replied. "Who cares? They're here, and we have them."

Turning to Mags, Finnick asked. "Why do you think they do have shelter like that?" his voice low.

She shook her head, looking back at him. "Their guesses are as good as mine." She tilted her head, "Sometimes they do have buildings... It keeps the arena interesting after year after year of wilderness."

He nodded and watched silently as the group did a quick onceover of the other houses before going to bring all the supplies to the one they'd chosen. He had to look back to Annie's personal screen to watch her setting up the sleeping area with Lumina as it had obviously been decided that Aidan creeping about around the edge of the little town was more interesting. Finnick looked around and watched him after a moment. It was all too clear what this guy was up to. Creeping around the outside of the houses; peering inside as he searched. It was obvious the boy was on a hunt._ No_, he thought_, you don't need a Career pack to hunt in the Games. _

He looked back to Annie's screen once more. Watching her lay the last of the blankets and sleeping bags down, he frowned when she tried to speak once more.

"I don't think these houses are going to be very warm." She croaked, her hand going to her throat again. Lumina turned to look at her, looking her over sympathetically.

"That sounds nasty."

Annie just nodded, touching her throat gingerly and Finnick got to his feet. Pushing his chair back, he turned and strode to the corner of the room where the Sponsoring station had been set up. Once a sponsor had given their money, the mentor would have it recorded in the system. Each tribute had a kitty in which their sponsors' donations were kept. When the tribute needed something, the mentor would go to the Sponsoring station and key in what they wanted sent to them in the arena. The cost would be taken out of their kitty.

Finnick went through the list of codes, looking for what he wanted. When he found it he repeated the code out loud before keying it into the system.

"There you go, Annie." He breathed.

* * *

Annie stepped outside into the street, following Torsti once everything inside their little house had been organised. Jarek, Inciness and Torsti had checked the other houses quickly and determined that they were just the same as the one they were in and were just as empty.

"Come on." Inciness insisted, "Hurry it up. Let's get the supplies back here so we can go hunt some idiots down."

"Well, when you put it like that..." Maverick smirked before taking off at a run toward the Cornucopia. Annie was just about to follow when a parachute caught her eye.

"That's fast." Inciness said, looking up. "That's got to be the first one of the Games."

Annie blinked when it headed for her, and when she raised a hand it landed neatly on her palm. "Yeah," Jarek said, smirking. "I would have put money on her being the first to get something. Perhaps I should have tried it on with Enobaria."

Annie shot him a look and unwrapped the little package.

"Like Enobaria would have touched you." Inciness rolled her eyes.

Shaking her head, Annie tipped the little round thing onto her hand. Lumina stepped up beside her, looking at it. "Did Odair just send you sweets?" She asked.

"I don't know." She croaked, her free hand going to her throat. Then it clicked. She quickly put the gift into her mouth and began to suck on it. The effect was almost instantaneous. A sweet flavour filled her mouth and when she swallowed a pleasant warmth began to spread down her throat. Her eyes closed in relief.

"Medicine..." Lumina observed. "Nice."

"I wonder if it- Oh, wow, it does work." Annie said, smiling widely at the fact that she could now speak properly once again.

"Let's go already." Inciness complained before heading toward Maverick who was now waiting by the Cornucopia.

"Thank you, Finnick." Annie murmured, following after them.

It took them about an hour to get all the supplies over into their little house. Torsti had suggested they keep it all upstairs so that anybody happening to look in the windows wouldn't see it all and be tempted. When they had everything piled up, they had a little break and a bit of a snack, and then noticed something that would become a problem.

"There are only ten bottles of water." Jarek said flatly.

"Ten?" Lumina asked, "But... That'll last us maybe two days..."

"Exactly."

"So, we'll just have to find some more." Torsti replied. "Don't stress."

"What if there is none?" Maverick said.

"Well, there's not much point stressing about that is there?" Torsti retorted, "There'll be nothing you can do."

They ate in silence for a few minutes before Lumina handed Annie something. "Here..." she said, "I saved this for you."

"Oh?" Annie opened it. It was a set of throwing knives. The sleek Capitol ones.

"The boy from District Eleven was about to make off with them at the Cornucopia. So, I stopped him."

"Thank you..." Annie looked at her, genuinely thankful. "You didn't have to do that."

Lumina smiled and shrugged. "With that Aidan creep around... I think we all need to be armed."

"I so want to kill that guy." Inciness commented, sharpening her blade. "Guy thinks it's funny to scare girls..."

"You see what he did to the girl from District Twelve?" Lumina asked, Inciness nodded.

"What?" Annie asked, "What did he do?"

"Strangled her." Inciness told her, "Then he kissed her when she was dead."

Annie's blood went cold. "He... seriously...?"

"Yep." Lumina nodded.

Unable to suppress a shudder, Annie let out a slow breath.

"I'll get him." Inciness said. "You'll see."

"Okay, well as fun as that will be..." Jarek put in, "We should go take a look around, see if we can't find anyone else and also a source of water."

"Let's go, then." Maverick was the first on his feet and Annie slowly got to hers. As she followed the others back outside, she caught Torsti looking at her.

"What?" she murmured. He gestured at the knives she was holding.

"You any good with them?" he asked.

"Yep."

"I see."

She just smiled.

Jarek led them off toward the forest near the base of the monstrous cliff face. The other tributes must have taken off because they didn't see so much as a footprint to indicate that anybody was still in the area. Maverick had just complained about that when they spotted a small lake at the base of the cliff. He suddenly laughed and ran toward it. The others watched as he bent and started scooping some up to drink.

Catching a scent in the air, Annie dipped her finger into the lake and then touched it to her tongue. "Don't drink that... That's salt water..." she said.

"So?" Maverick asked, scooping up another mouthful.

"So you can't drink salt water. You'll make yourself sick."

He just looked at her. She blinked.

"How do you not know that?" Torsti asked. Maverick blinked at him.

"So it's useless." Jarek said, "We'll still need to find fresh water."

"My guess..."Torsti pointed up the cliff. "Up there..."

* * *

Author's Note;

Sorry for the delay. I'm back to work in a few days and need to prepare for the year. My updates probably won't be every day from now on. I shall try to keep them as quick as possible, however.

Thanks for the reviews!


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

Finnick watched as the pack decided if they should climb the cliff to see if anything of use really was up there or not.

"We should wait until tomorrow." Lumina said. "I'm stuffed..."

"But if there's no water up there, we'll run out." The boy from District Two said. Finnick thought his name was Jarek.

"That's what sponsors are for." Lumina said, her hand on her hip.

Finnick got up to check the price of water at the moment. If they didn't find water quickly then no doubt the price of it would skyrocket instantly. When he'd returned to his seat, they had apparently decided that they could wait until the next morning before going up. They headed through the trees, no doubt hoping to come across someone to kill.

"We should rest until nightfall." The boy from District One said, "Then we'll see who's dumb enough to light a fire."

"It's early afternoon." The girl with the crazy eyes groaned. "We're not going to just sit around for hours. This is our chance to wipe them out."

"They're not going anywhere." Torsti put in. "They can't get out of the arena."

"What if we break into groups then?" That was Annie and Finnick smiled. "Some of us can hunt... and others can go and make the house secure. Anybody could just walk in and steal our stuff at the moment..."

"What are you going to do, Four?" Jarek drawled, "Weave nets from rope?"

"Why not?" Annie asked, her voice low. "Trapping someone who's trying to steal our food seems like a good idea to me."

Jarek gave a mean laugh. "Odair teach you that?"

Annie just blinked, but Finnick saw the irritation in her eyes. He watched as she shifted her weight from one foot to another. "What's the matter?" She asked Jarek cooly, "Jealous of any skill that doesn't require you to hit something with a sword, so you dismiss it as useless?"

"I didn't learn my skills on my back." He smirked, "Or were you on your knees?"

Finnick had never before seen the look that crossed Annie's face then. She looked livid.

"Watch your mouth." She growled.

"Watch yours." He retorted, "Or I'll show you how to really use it."

Finnick watched as Annie snarled and stepped toward Jarek, but Torsti got between them. "Okay." The blond boy said loudly. "Annie will go back to the house to make some traps..."

"Fine." Annie moved away and Finnick watched as she visibly forced herself to appear neutral once more.

"I'll help her." Lumina moved to follow Annie.

"Fine." Jarek said, "The rest of us will hunt."

Finnick watched Annie roll her eyes and head back toward the house. He smiled. Where had this sass come from? Had it always been there? He thought back to how she had been when he'd first met her. It had, he remembered. It must have been suppressed as she grew more and more afraid of the arena. He hoped that it was back to stay. The sponsors would love it.

He watched as the large screen tracked the progress of the hunting pack. After only about a minute however, it jumped over to Annie and Lumina. _Of course, _he thought. Of course this would be more interesting for the Capitol audience; he was the topic of conversation.

"You shouldn't let Jarek get to you like that. He was just trying to get a rise out of you."

"The guy's a dick." Annie muttered and the blonde girl nodded.

"He is. But he was purposely insulting you."

"I know that."

"He's probably just jealous."

"Of what?" Annie asked.

"Finnick Odair..."

"I don't get it?" Annie frowned.

Lumina shrugged. "He has everything that Jarek wants. Fame, glory, money..."

Finnick watched Annie bite back a reply to that comment and just nod slowly.

"Besides," Lumina continued. "Jarek will never be that attractive."

Annie laughed then. "Well, that's certainly true."

"Oh, I saw Odair up close for the first time before our interviews with Caesar..." Lumina said, "You remember, when he was talking to you?"

"Yeah..." Annie nodded.

"Even more attractive in person!" Lumina cried, "How did you listen to anything he said while he was just standing there being so sexy?"

Finnick watched Annie look at Lumina as if she didn't quite believe what she'd just heard. "Uhm... Well..."

"I mean," Lumina kept going, "Obviously that's what does it for you... because well...he did."

Finnick grinned at the uncomfortable look on Annie's face as a small blush worked its way into her cheeks.

"Aw, you're blushing." Lumina smiled. "Wow... he must have been good." The blonde girl just looked at Annie, clearly waiting for an answer.

"Yeah..." Annie murmured.

"Why've you gone all shy?" The blonde girl asked, "Oh, do you think he's watching?"

"Probably..."

"HEY ODAIR!" Lumina suddenly yelled, "NICE ARSE!"

Finnick looked around the Mentors' Station as light laughter rippled throughout. "Is she yours?" he asked Cashmere.

"How can you tell?" The blonde woman replied lightly. He just smiled and looked back to the screen, laughing at the shocked look on Annie's face. "How'd you get her to spin that crap about sleeping with you?"

He looked back to Cashmere. "What?"

"You heard me. It's crap."

"What makes you think that?" he asked.

"Please." She scoffed. "I know a virgin when I see one." She looked him over. "That girl is either a virgin, or in love with you. Or both."

"Virgin." He replied, leaning back in his chair. Cashmere tipped her head.

"You see." She blinked "So how'd you get her to do it?"

"I didn't." He replied, "Somebody else started it... we just decided to use it."

"Clever." The woman ran her fingers through her hair. "Of course you're probably the only one that will work for..."

"We do what we can to keep them alive..." he replied. She just nodded and looked back to the screen where the two girls had just reached their house and were heading inside.

Now that the conversation was over, the footage returned to the group that were hunting. Finnick frowned, watching as they came across the pair of tributes from District Six.

"What've we got here?" Jarek crowed, clearly pleased. The pair from District Six jumped up.

"Run, Clodia!" The boy ordered, "I'll hold them off."

Finnick watched as the girl, Clodia, backed away. "Come with me, Roman." She breathed.

"RUN!" he yelled at her. Clodia turned and took off into the trees.

"Get her, Inciness." Jarek growled, drawing his sword as he advanced on Roman. Inciness took off into the trees after her, her knife already out. Finnick watched as Jarek reached Roman and cut him down easily, practically ignoring the attempt to defend himself the boy put up with a sword he clearly had no idea how to use. "Extra weapons, Maverick." Jarek said, picking up the sword from where it had fallen beside the dead boy and then tossing it to Maverick who caught it, laughing.

The scream had the three boys look up quickly, and then the footage was cut to where Inciness had Clodia on the ground. The girl's scream was cut off as Inciness drove her curved blade into her throat, the spray of blood catching her right across the face. When she opened her crazy-looking eyes, they stood in stark contrast to the blood splattered across her face. She looked utterly mad. Finnick wondered if perhaps she was.

"Six is out." Brutus commented flatly. Finnick shook his head and looked back to Annie's screen. She and Lumina were sitting on the stairs in the house and weaving a net out of rope from the supplies.

He knew that he shouldn't begin to hope, but after the few hours that she'd been in the arena already he felt a little brighter than he had all last night. He'd known that she had more strength than she realised, but since the gong had sounded she'd proven that she had more than that. She had guts and determination. Her chances were looking better and better. So, no. He knew that he shouldn't begin to hope; but he just might anyway.

* * *

"Did you know Torsti before the reaping?" Lumina asked as they wove a large net. Annie shook her head.

"No." She replied, "I don't think I'd ever seen him before then..."

"Is District Four big then?"

Annie bit her lip. "I... don't think it's as small as some Districts... but it's not huge either." She gave a shrug, "There are quite a few villages along the coast, some towns bigger than others."

"You come from the one where the reaping is held?"

"Yeah." She nodded, "It's the biggest in the District."

Lumina nodded, "I would like to see all the different Districts."

"Win, and you will." Annie replied, glancing at Lumina. The girl kept surprising her. She couldn't quite peg her down. Every time she thought she'd figured her out, she was proven wrong.

Lumina shrugged her own slim shoulders. "Maybe." She replied, then looked at her. "Jarek is going to be a problem for us." Annie nodded. She'd worked that much out within five seconds of meeting him. "Do you think Torsti could take him?"

"I don't know..." She replied, "I've not seen him really fight."

"Mmm. I don't think Maverick can."

"No?" Annie asked uneasily.

"Jarek is... well, he fights like nothing I've ever seen before..."

Annie just looked at her, the old feeling of dread returning. "Okay..." She said evenly after a moment, "So we don't confront him face to face..."

Lumina nodded, "Yeah... and you shouldn't let him get at you like before." She made a face, "I can't believe he said he'd teach you how to use your mouth properly."

Annie shuddered. "So gross." She murmured,

"Yeah, and it's not like you haven't already been taught everything you need to know by Finnick Odair." Lumina snickered. Annie felt her cheeks heat up again and Lumina just laughed. "Oh, I'm just teasing you." She grinned. "You blush and it's funny."

"Why is that funny?"

"Because you flaunted it in front of the entire country...And why wouldn't you...? He's damn fine..." She looked at her, "But in person you blush like you're embarrassed..."

"I see." Annie said softly.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about... probably ninety percent of all the women in Panem wish they were you."

"Not right now, they don't."

"You know what I mean... Women would rip each other's eyes out for a chance at him."

Annie looked at Lumina out of the corner of her eye. "...Are you a fan, Lumina?" She asked delicately. The blonde girl laughed.

"Should I not be?" she asked, "The guy is gorgeous, he kicked arse in the arena... what's not to like? What else is there?"

"Personality?" Annie suggested.

Lumina nodded, conceding. "So what's he like?" She asked, "Shallow and ridiculous or what?"

"No..." She said softly, her hands moving to weave her net. "He's not shallow."

"Ridiculous?"

Annie just shook her head.

"Perfect?"

"Pretty much." Annie sighed, looking at her. Hopefully the girl would let it go with that answer. She really didn't feel like talking about Finnick with the whole of Panem listening in. They probably all thought they knew who he was anyway. They got his public persona, they couldn't have her opinion of him too.

Lumina looked at her silently for a few moments before just nodding. "Are you glad he was your mentor?"

"Yes." She replied simply.

"I was thankful for Cashmere, too." The girl said, and Annie looked at her. "She really did everything she could for me."

"I'm sure she still is." Annie replied and Lumina nodded again.

"Yeah."

When they got their trap ready and set up to protect the supplies, the girls went down to the room on the ground floor that hadn't been turned into their sleeping area. The only thing in it was a large wooden table, there weren't even any chairs. "Well, that's useful." Annie commented.

"Do you think there are chairs in the other houses?"

I don't know."

"I could check..."

"Wait until the others get back first. Anybody could be hiding in one."

Lumina nodded and they both sat on the table to wait for the others to return from their hunt. They didn't have to wait long before the door opened and they came through just as it began to get dark. Annie's eyes immediately caught on Inciness who was covered in blood.

"We got the pair from District Six." She said, seeing Annie's questioning look.

"Oh..."

They'd all just settled down after having a bit of a snack when they heard the Capitol anthem. Without saying anything they all got up and hurried outside to look to the sky. The deathtoll today would be important in setting the tone for the rest of the games.

Annie watched as the first face to appear was the boy from District Five, then the girl. Both tributes from District Six followed them. Both from District Nine were shown and then both from District Ten. After that came the boy from District Eleven and then the girl from District Twelve.

"Ten down." Maverick said when the sky went dark once more. Annie looked at Torsti who yawned.

"I say we get some sleep..." The tall boy said, running a hand through his blond hair. The rest of them actually agreed and they all headed back inside again. Annie lay down between Torsti and Lumina, hoping that she would be able to get some rest. Tomorrow would be awful; she could already feel it.

* * *

Author's Note;

Sorry again for the delay. Back to work.

I'd still appreciate any comments you have. :D


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty**

Annie was awoken by the sound of a canon. Sitting up quickly, she looked around. Lumina was asleep beside her and she edged away from the girl, trying not to wake her as she got up.

"Sweet dreams?" Jarek asked from his position by the far wall.

"Fantastic." She replied absently, smoothing her hair back.

"I'll bet."

"Wonder who that canon was for..."

"Won't make a difference in the end." He replied. Annie supposed that was true.

"I wonder who did it..." She answered. He just nodded.

"My money is on Aidan." Torsti said from behind Annie, causing her to jump as she hadn't realised that he was awake.

"Or the pair from District Three." Jarek replied. She looked at Jarek, then. She hadn't thought the boy would think the pair from District Three were a threat. Jarek tapped his temple "Smart..."

"Yes." She agreed. She watched him look out the nearby window.

"We need to get moving." He said after a moment, before getting to his feet. "We should get as much done as we can before it gets too hot. We don't have the water..."

"Okay," Torsti agreed, getting to his feet and nudging Maverick with his foot.

After about twenty minutes, they headed out the door and toward the clifface.

"Are you good at rock climbing?" Lumina asked Annie as they approached the base. Annie turned her eyes upward, straining to see the top.

"Rocks at the beach, sure." She answered softly, "I've never even seen one this large before..."

"Hope you can keep up." Inciness commented, slinging her pack over her shoulder with a grin.

"It's all in the legs." Lumina told Annie. Annie just nodded; her legs were just fine. Dancing had made them lean and strong.

"Are we all climbing up?" Torsti asked when they reached the base.

"Why not?" Jarek asked. "Don't think you can do it?"

"Oh, I can do it. I just don't see the point."

Jarek shrugged. "What if there is water up there?" He asked. "We'll need everyone to carry as much as they can."

Torsti nodded. "Okay..." Annie watched him eye the rock face uncertainly. She guessed that he was probably thinking the exact same thing that she was. It would likely take them all day to get up there and if there was no fresh water up there? They'd run out of what they had for sure and have no way to replace it.

Sponsors, she reminded herself. That's what sponsors were for. Finnick wouldn't let her die of dehydration. She would be fine.

Giving Torsti an encouraging smile, Annie followed Lumina up the cliff. They'd climbed for about two hours when they'd reached about two thirds of the way up.

"We're nearly there..." The blonde girl smiled back at her. Annie nodded, resting on a narrow ledge. Reaching into her pack, she took out her water bottle which was nearly empty and allowed herself a single mouthful.

"Oh, my legs." Torsti groaned, leaning against the cliff beside her. "How are you still walking?"

"I use my legs a lot..." Annie replied, knowing that he would understand her reference to dance without informing the whole of Panem what she did. He nodded.

"I see."

"Keep up!" Jarek called from ahead, and Annie stood back up straight. Torsti groaned beside her and forced himself back to his own feet. They'd just taken a single step when there was a low rumble and the ground vibrated beneath their feet. Annie gasped and pressed herself as flat against the cliff as she could when a light rain of pebbles fell from above.

"What was that?" Lumina asked loudly.

"A small earthquake?" Torsti replied, brushing pebbles from his hair. Annie nodded, extracting herself from the cliff face.

"I'm glad it wasn't a big one."

"I reckon." Torsti nodded. "I don't fancy the cliff coming down on me." Annie nodded again. That would be worse than just dying as it would probably kill the lot of them... and that would most likely mean that Aidan would win the Games. The thought nearly made her sick.

* * *

"Was that an earthquake?" Finnick asked, looking around at the other Victors.

"Only a small one." Haymitch said, waving his hand.

"Natural or created by the Gamemakers?" He asked, frowning. They hadn't felt a thing in The Capitol. That didn't mean much, though. The earthquake could have been too small or maybe the arena was too far away.

"Who knows?" Cashmere put in. "Nothing we can do."

Finnick nodded and looked back to the screen, watching Annie climb. He wondered if she were surprised by how well she was doing. While even Torsti was struggling, Annie seemed to be taking it in her stride. Her dancing had clearly given her strong legs and right now she looked magnificent. He smiled, knowing that any potential sponsors watching her now would have no doubt that she belonged in the Career pack.

He hadn't had a problem in finding sponsors for her yet. After the way Annie had presented herself during her interview, several more had come forward with money. As such, Annie had quite a decent sum of money in her kitty. He guessed that he'd be able to buy whatever she needed for the next few days. After that, the prices would rise and everybody would need to really seek out any potential sponsors to support their tributes.

He watched silently beside Mags as the group eventually reached the top of the cliff and looked around. He leaned forward, trying to get a better look. There was a small strip of rock at the edge and then the rest was water. The cliff was a huge dam. The entire thing.

"Well, that solves their water problem." Cashmere said lightly.

"I wonder if it's the only water source." Finnick replied.

"Could be." Haymitch put in flatly. "Draw them all in together..."

"Half of them probably can't get up there..." He replied.

"Then they'll have to head for the houses and steal." The man answered gruffly. "Draw them all in together."

Finnick nodded, understanding. Water was how the Gamemakers hoped to get their bloodshed. He watched as the group tested the water and then began filling up the empty bottles they'd brought with them. Once they'd determined that there was nothing else up there they decided to head back down. They had very nearly reached the bottom when the earth started to shake again.

* * *

The narrow rock ledge gave way beneath Annie's feet and she screamed as she went down. Torsti had grabbed her wrist before she'd even registered that he'd turned and then he was down on his knees, holding tightly to her as she dangled over the edge into the open air. Kicking her feet wildly, Annie tried to find something to hold her weight. The rock around her was all smooth however, and her feet just kept slipping off.

"Calm down, Annie!" Torsti yelled at her.

"I can't." She cried, "I can't get a grip on anything!"

"Panicking isn't going to help." He replied sharply. Annie tried to calm down then. She drew a shaky breath, trying to ignore the blood pounding in her ears. Her wrist was starting to hurt both from Torsti's tight hold and the fact that it was currently taking the weight of her entire body. "I can't pull you up..." he said to her and Annie looked up into his grey eyes silently. "There's no space on the ledge anymore and I doubt it'll hold all of us for much longer anyway."

_This is it_, she thought, _This is when I die..._

"Do you trust me?" Torsti asked her, his tone low and intense, his grey eyes locked on her green. She nodded. "Good." he said simply, and then he let her go.

Annie screamed loudly. The air had not even completely left her lungs when she hit the water. Cool, deep, salty water. She'd landed in the salty lake that Maverick had tried to drink from the day before. Relief hit her and she pushed herself to the surface, drawing another deep breath. She looked up to try and see the others still on the cliff. A small rock tumbled down from above, and Annie swam back, away from the edge. Hearing a small cry, she looked up again.

More rocks fell from above, and Annie watched as they rained down upon the others. There were several shrieks and then two bodies fell from the cliff into the water. Horrified, Annie swam for the closest shore. By the time she'd gotten out and run around the edge, she spotted Lumina trying to drag Torsti from the water. Not far away, the others were reaching the ground and heading their way.

"He's not breathing..." Lumina told her.

Annie dropped to her knees, pushing Lumina out of the way. Kneeling over Torsti, she checked his airway before quickly beginning CPR.

* * *

"I don't think your girl has quite grasped the concept of the Games..." Haymitch said to Finnick. Finnick couldn't look away from the screen.

"Of course she has." He murmured, watching Annie desperately trying to breathe life back into Torsti. Finnick bit his lip. He'd seen Torsti struck on the head by a falling rock and knocked unconscious. There was no way of knowing how badly he'd been injured. He could wake up within moments, or not at all. How would Annie fare then, without him? He twisted his hands in his lap. She'd manage if she had to. She would do whatever it takes. He knew that.

"Come on, Torsti!" Annie's desperate voice just about gutted Finnick and he looked to Mags beside him. The woman was watching the screen so still that he wasn't even sure if she were breathing. Reaching over, he took her hand gently. She flicked him an acknowledging glance, but returned her gaze directly to the screen.

By now the other Careers had reached the three by the water's edge. "He's had it..." Jarek said, looking at Torsti, "I'm surprised I haven't heard a canon by now."

Annie ignored his comments and kept up with her CPR. After a few more moments, Torsti coughed and she leaned back on her hands with a relieved sigh. Finnick watched her try to regain her breath. He frowned then when her sea green eyes looked toward Jarek warily. The boy from District Two was looking down at them in a way similar to what one would expect a large meat eating predator would look at its injured prey.

"I think we should head back..." Lumina said, getting to her feet.

"Probably a good idea..." Annie agreed, getting to her own feet and then helping a slightly dazed Torsti up. It didn't escape Finnick's notice that one of her hands hovered over one of her throwing knives. Jarek gave off the predator vibe even though the screen. He had no doubt it would be even more intense in person. Not everybody picked up on those things, though. The fact that Annie seemed to was just one less thing for him to worry about. If she could sense danger, she could be ready for it when it came for her.

He looked up when Mags got to her feet. The woman then slowly made her way toward the Sponsoring station in the corner. He wondered for a moment what she would send Torsti, but then he figured that he'd find out anyway. Watching carefully as the group slowly made its way back to their base, he then quickly cast his eyes around at the screens for the tributes from other districts. He hoped that nobody else was in the area. He didn't think Torsti would stand much chance if they had to fight, but then the only person that he really thought would pose a threat that was left was Aidan. He doubted the boy from District Seven was stupid enough to attack the Career pack when they were all together. They should be safe enough for the moment.

They'd just reached their house when the small parachute dropped toward Torsti. Pain killers. That's what Mags had sent. That made sense. Torsti was going to have one killer headache. Annie gave him a water bottle and watched as he took them before they went inside and settled down for a while. They had water and supplies now; they were in no rush.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thanks for the beautiful reviews, guys! I love you all!


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty One**

Finnick watched the large screen as the young boy from District Eight snuck into one of the houses. The boy was obviously looking for food and water as he'd clearly not had any since the Games begun. Nearby, Cecelia began crying once more. "No..." she sobbed. Looking over toward her, Finnick saw that she was curled on one of the large couches with her arms around her knees. Woof was beside her, stroking her shoulder in an attempt to soothe her.

Looking back to the screen, Finnick frowned when Aidan was shown silently coming down the stairs having heard the boy enter the house. Cecelia cried harder. He didn't want to watch, but he made himself.

The boy was in the kitchen, going through the cupboards, desperately searching. He was making that much noise he didn't even hear Aidan come up behind him. The first the boy knew about it was when Aidan had grabbed a handful of his curly hair and yanked him to his feet. It was over quickly. He didn't torture him like he had the girl from District Twelve. Pulling a knife, Aidan swiftly cut the boy's throat and let him fall to the ground as the canon sounded. Cecelia howled and Woof escorted her quickly from the room.

"District Eight is down." Brutus commented and Finnick returned his attention to Annie's screen. She looked rather startled after the canon. She was looking toward the window as if afraid something may come through. When nothing did, she settled back down, chewing absently on the dried fruit she held in her hand. Leaning toward the screen, Finnick bit his lip, looking at the dark fingershaped bruises marking Annie's throat. The medicine he'd sent had taken care of the pain and allowed her to speak normally again, but it had done nothing for the now purple and black bruising that stood out in stark contrast to her otherwise pale skin.

Mags grabbed the back of his shirt and hauled him back in his chair. "Sit back." She said gruffly. He glanced at her and tried to remain sitting in his chair properly. "Pressing your face into the screen won't help her."

"I know." He replied softly. "I was just looking at the bruises..."

"Mm." Mags' eyes moved to Annie's screen and she nodded. "You took care of the problem. She's not in pain. That's fine." He watched the woman's eyes move over Annie once more. "Makes her look tougher."

"I think it makes her look like a victim." He murmured, closing his eyes. It made him want to get in there and protect her. He shifted restlessly. What else could he do? What did she need? He couldn't think of anything. He shifted again. "Mags..." he breathed.

"She's fine for now. Go and rest."

"No..." he shook his head. "I'm not leaving..."

"She's okay." Mags told him. "You haven't left since the Games started... You need to shower. Go."

He looked back to Annie's screen. "You'll watch her?"

"I'll watch her." Mags confirmed. Finnick nodded slowly and got to his feet. Pressing a kiss to the top of Mags' head, he turned and hurried out the door. He would shower and be back within twenty minutes if he was quick.

* * *

Annie looked up when The Capitol's anthem began to play. Getting to her feet, she followed the others to a window to look out at the seal in the sky. The first face to appear was the young boy from District Eight, and Annie let out a small sigh. The girl from District Eight came next and then The Capitol seal once again.

"Well, that's District Eight down." Jarek said, "I didn't think that kid would have lasted five minutes."

"Well, he lasted over twenty four hours." Torsti replied before going back to his position by the wall and sitting down again.

"Surprising." Jarek said flatly.

Annie sighed again and returned to her own position by the wall. Leaning her head back against the wood, she closed her eyes. The climb had completely worn her out and she knew that she'd sleep deeply tonight. The thought rather scared her as she didn't know if she'd be able to wake easily if something happened. What if someone snuck in while she slept and tried to kill her? If she was too deeply asleep she might die before she even knew there was any danger.

Lumina sank down beside her with a groan. "My legs..."

Annie smiled at her. "Aw."

"I hope we don't have to do that climb too many times." The blonde girl said, rubbing her calves.

"We got enough water for a few days." Inciness put in. "It could be fine."

"Not if someone steals it." Maverick said, rubbing his own legs.

"I'm cramping..." Lumina whined. "Oowww."

Annie watched them all. Every one of them seemed to have felt the after-effects of the climb. Apparently the Careers from Districts One and Two didn't train much with leg work. She'd felt the work out, but she wasn't in pain from it. The thought made her smile. The more time she spent with them, the more she realised that she'd counted herself out too quickly. Finnick had been right; she was capable of winning. She just needed the right circumstances.

"Shall we get some sleep?" Torsti murmured, stretching with a yawn. Annie nodded, resisting a yawn of her own. They all looked up when something tapped against the window. Getting up with a pained groan, Maverick went and opened the window, letting in the silvery parachute. Silent, they all watched as it drifted toward Lumina before landing in her lap. Annie watched the blonde girl inspect the small tube that had been attached.

"What is it?" Jarek asked.

"For the pain..." Lumina answered, unscrewing the lid and squeezing a bit of the ointment onto a finger before rubbing it into her legs. "Oh, yeah..."

"Really?" Maverick asked.

"Yeah..." Lumina squeezed more out and rubbed it into her legs. "That pain fades so quickly..." She grinned and looked up, throwing the tube to Maverick. When he'd rubbed some into his own aching legs, he passed it back to Lumina who then tossed it at Inciness. Annie blinked, not expecting that. She was fairly certain that the tube hadn't been cheap, and here Lumina was just sharing it with her rivals from other Districts. Still, she couldn't figure the girl out.

When they were all done, Annie lay down to get some rest. Her eyes were growing heavier by the second and she knew she couldn't hold sleep off for much longer. Within moments, she was out.

* * *

Finnick yet again spent the night in the Mentoring Station. Mags had tried to get him to go back to the Fourth Floor to sleep in his bed, but he'd refused. If Annie needed something, he had to be there. When his eyes opened in the morning, he looked straight to her screen. She was still asleep. He watched for a moment, looking her over. He watched the way that her chest rose and fell as she breathed slowly and evenly. He watched as she lifted a hand and brushed back the hair that was splayed across her face. A moment later her eyes opened.

Finnick watched her blink slowly before sitting up and looking around. Leaning over, she nudged Torsti awake and they both got quietly to their feet and headed outside without waking anybody up.

"How do you feel this morning?" Annie asked. Torsti nodded, rubbing his head.

"Okay..." He replied.

"Good..." She said, looking at him. "Jarek nearly looked as if he thought it was time to attack..."

"I would think so." The tall boy agreed, "But he still needs us for the moment..."

"Needs us?"

"Well, maybe not... But we're still useful."

"Okay..." Annie looked around before blinking as she apparently tried to focus on something.

"What is it?" Torsti asked.

"I think I saw someone in that window..." She pointed to a nearby house. Torsti turned to look, and Finnick looked to the main screen which was now focused upon them.

"I'll get the others..." The blond boy said, and before Annie could argue he'd run inside and awoken them. Finnick watched the screen which was now focused on the darkened window of the house.

"What was it?" Cashmere asked nobody in particular.

"Someone hiding probably..." Gloss replied, leaning forward toward the screen.

"Who?" Finnick asked, looking around. Somebody had to know. Somebody had a screen with one of their tributes hiding in there on it. Nobody was saying. He narrowed his eyes and looked back to the large screen where Annie was now looking from window to window, trying to catch some movement. "Good girl..." he murmured, relieved that she wasn't about to go running into the house to investigate on her own. He watched her shift her weight from one foot to the other continuously until the others came out of the house behind her.

"Someone holed up in there?" Jarek asked loudly.

"I guess so..." Torsti replied as the camera zoomed out to get a good shot of the group eyeing the house.

"Well, let's go hunting." Inciness grinned, unsheathing her blade. Finnick leaned back in his chair as he watched the group approach the house. Annie followed behind them, one of her own blades in her hand. Getting to his feet, Finnick moved closer to the large screen. He looked around, trying to get a glimpse of something useful on another screen, but most of them were generally blocked by mentors sitting in front of them. He had no way of telling who it was that was waiting in that house or what Annie would face.

Swearing when Jarek split them all up into groups to search the house, Finnick sat himself down in his own chair once more, wanting to keep an eye on Annie if the main screen was to focus on another group. It did. It followed Jarek, Inciness and Maverick heading into the ground floor kitchen. He watched Annie's screen as she, Torsti and Lumina went upstairs.

"...Not what I expected." Gloss' surprised voice had Finnick turning back around to the big screen in time to see the girl from District Three hurry into one of the upstairs rooms. Not what he had been expecting either. He'd thought for sure it would be Aidan.

"I'll check down here..." Torsti's voice had Finnick's eyes flicking back to Annie's screen. He watched as the blond boy headed down a hallway, leaving Annie and Lumina by the stairs.

* * *

Annie jumped when Lumina suddenly spun around, staring up the hall. "I heard something..." The blonde girl grinned.

"Heard what? A person?"

"Let's find out."

Annie followed her up the hallway. She watched the way Lumina's movements had become more balanced, almost feline. She was once again reminded that the girl had been trained her entire life to become a living weapon. How could she keep forgetting?

"Where was it?" She whispered. Lumina turned to look at her.

"Just up here..."

"Maybe we should get the others..."

"And let Jarek steal all the action? Screw that." Lumina murmured, stopping outside a door off to the left. Annie stood behind her, watching the girl listen carefully before opening it and stepping inside. Annie hurried in after her. Catching a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye, Annie reacted without thinking. She threw herself at Lumina, pushing her clean across the room. Something splashed over Annie and a second later she screamed as her skin burned.

"It's acid!" Lumina yelled, "Lose the jacket!"

Annie ripped her jacket off and threw it to the floor as she backed into the wall. Another splash erupted around her and she turned away when she realised it had come from above. Whoever had lured them up here had booby trapped the room. Looking up, she saw several containers suspended in the air around the room.

"Who sends somebody acid?" Annie cried, going up on her toes when the acid pooling on the floor began to approach her.

"A sick fuck!" Lumina replied, getting around the pooling acid on the floor and to the doorway. Annie watched fumes rise into the air as the liquid slowly ate the floorboards. If she didn't get out of the room soon then the floor would give way beneath her. The acid blocked her path to the door however.

She looked at Lumina who shook her head.

"I'm going to have to..."

After a moment, the blonde girl nodded. "Be quick then..."

Annie nodded and readied herself. The only way out was through the acid. She'd have to run. She jumped when another container fell from above, splashing to the floor. Letting out a breath, she darted forward without further hesitation. After only three steps she could feel the bottoms of her shoes become tacky and begin to stick to the ground. She leaped.

Landing safely by Lumina, Annie quickly kicked her shoes off and watched as they practically disintegrated before her eyes. Whatever that acid was was good stuff. She didn't want to imagine what it would do to somebody if they copped a face full of it. Whoever sent it into the arena was a nasty piece of work.

Both Annie and Lumina jumped when a canon sounded. Without comment, they turned and hurried back down the hall and down the stairs. Annie stumbled when she caught her foot on something sharp while hurrying down the stairs, but she kept going. Neither girl stopped until they were outside.

"Who do you think it was?" Annie asked. Lumina shook her head.

"No way to know..."

Annie nodded slowly, her eyes on the door to the house. She gasped when the door suddenly opened, but then let out a relieved sigh when it was Torsti who exited and headed toward them.

"It was the girl from District Three." He said. "I got her."

* * *

Author's Note:

I hope you enjoyed the long awaited chapter.

Reviews are motivation.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty Two**

Finnick watched without blinking as Annie went back into their little house with the others. He could see the skin on her arms was already red and blistering and the way she'd clenched her jaw in obvious pain hadn't escaped his notice either. The way she was limping and leaving a small trail of blood behind her as she walked had him twisting his hands painfully in his lap. He was on the very edge of his chair as he watched her sit herself up on the kitchen table. Torsti stood in front of her, looking her over.

"Let me see..." The blond boy said gently, lifting one of her hands to inspect her arm. Finnick watched Annie wince but remain silent as Torsti looked at her blistering skin.

"...I think there was something you could put on that in the supplies." Lumina said, heading for the stairs. "I'll get it."

"Thanks." Annie said softly, her eyes closing slightly. Finnick let out a slow breath, not taking his eyes off her.

"Your foot is bleeding..." Torsti said, lifting it to have a look. "What did you do? ...where are your shoes?"

"The acid ruined them." She replied, opening her eyes to look at him, "Then there was something sharp on the stairs..."

"It's a rather small cut..." Torsti told her and she nodded. Finnick got to his feet, but didn't move further. She would need new shoes, but he wanted to wait and see what Lumina was bringing back and if it would be efficient enough. If not, he'd send some proper medicine at the same time. He watched as the blond boy got some water and began cleaning the blood from Annie's foot. He carefully watched the way Torsti's hands moved over her; clinical, nothing more. Finnick frowned, knowing that he shouldn't even be trying to determine things like that. He was doing it more and more, however. Any time somebody touched her, it had his full attention.

At that moment Lumina hurried back in and gave Annie a small tub of something. "It says it's for burns..."

"Thanks..." Annie replied, unscrewing the lid and wiping some of the ointment inside onto her arm. Finnick watched her face. It was expressionless. After a moment she nodded. "It helps..."

"Here..." Lumina took the tub and helped to rub Annie's arms down with the medicine. Finnick watched intently. The redness didn't go away, but if it lessened the pain for her then he supposed it was sufficient. Turning, he made his way over to the Sponsoring station.

He searched through the list of codes until he found some decent shoes. He stared at the price. It was triple what he had thought it would be. It would just about empty Annie's kitty. She needed shoes, though. He bit his lip and keyed the code into the system.

Returning to his seat, he calculated how much she had left. He had to get her more. Twisting his hands as he thought, Finnick watched as Annie's foot was bandaged up. He supposed he could make a few calls. He knew some people who might be persuaded into sponsoring a tribute. Especially one that was doing as well as Annie was. Yes, he could make a few calls.

* * *

Once her foot was bandaged and Lumina had rubbed the medicine into her burned arms, Annie hobbled awkwardly into the room where their sleeping things were still arranged.

"Jarek and the others have gone off hunting..." Torsti said, coming in after a few moments. Annie propped herself up against the wall.

"Okay." She replied, looking at the skin on her arms. The pain was gone but the skin was still red and blistering. She wondered vaguely if it would scar before she remembered that she probably wouldn't live long enough to find out.

Torsti pushed a window open, allowing a gentle breeze to blow across the room. "You need to get on your feet quickly." He told her.

She nodded. "I know." She replied, "Or else Jarek will cut my throat in my sleep."

"Yep."

She made a face. When she looked up, it was to see a parachute coming in through the open window. It headed toward her and landed on her lap. Shoes.

"Thank you, Finnick." She said loudly. Torsti looked at her.

"How have you not run out of sponsors?" he asked. Annie shrugged, detaching the parachute from the shoes.

"I don't know." She murmured, "I imagine these were expensive..."

"Did he send you anything to heal that cut?"

She checked inside the shoes. "No..."

"Mm... Perhaps you have, then."

She nodded. Perhaps she had run out now. Chewing her lip, she frowned. That would be bad. Her need for sponsors would only increase when she detached herself from the group and took off on her own. She couldn't afford to run out while she was still with the group. Finnick knew that. Perhaps she hadn't run out and he was just saving her funds for later. That seemed believable. She went with that.

The cut was small anyway. If she kept t clean then it shouldn't pose much of a problem for her. Lumina sat down opposite her. "Did you disinfect the cut?" The girl asked Torsti.

"Yeah." He replied, resting his head back against the wall.

Annie watched as Lumina eyed the shoes sitting beside her. "Well, that's handy." The girl said. Annie smiled softly.

"Indeed."

"We should get some rest." Torsti murmured, "Before the others come back…"

Annie closed her eyes, comfortable. "I could use a nap." She replied.

"I'll keep watch." Torsti answered and she nodded without opening her eyes again. He said something else but she couldn't make it out and was too tired to try.

Her eyes flew open what seemed like hours later when the sound of a cannon made her jump. Lumina and Torsti were still where they had been earlier and both were looking around toward the window. "The others are still not back?" She asked.

"Not yet." Lumina answered.

"How long was I asleep for?"

"About an hour I suppose…"

Annie stretched, rolling her shoulders. She then inspected the skin on her arms. The blisters were slowly disappearing but the skin was still red. The pain had not returned, so she dismissed it. "We don't know who that cannon was for…?"

"Not a clue." Torsti said, getting to his feet and moving toward the window to have a look outside. "I assume the others will be heading back now."

"They might not." Lumina commented. Torsti shrugged and moved back to sit down in his spot again. "Jarek is probably having the time of his life." She continued.

Annie tried to count who was left. There were the six of them, then Varen from District Three. There was Aidan and his District partner and then the beautiful girl from District Eleven and the boy from District Twelve. One of them was now dead…

She found herself hoping that it was Aidan but something was telling her that he was still out there.

After another hour, the others returned and they prepared food to eat. Apparently the cannon they'd heard had been for the boy from District Twelve. Annie checked him off her mental list.

"That doesn't look good."

Annie looked up from her plate at Inciness' voice. The girl was looking at her arms.

"It's okay." She replied, "Can't even feel it anymore."

"How's the foot feel?" Torsti asked after a moment. Annie set her plate aside and got slowly to her feet, testing her foot. It felt fine and she told him so. He nodded silently.

"Odair send you something to fix all that up?" Jarek asked, smirking.

"What?" Annie stared at him.

"He did, didn't he?" He looked at her. "You had a little boo-boo and he fixed it right up."

Annie felt her cheeks flush red. She knew that she shouldn't let anything this guy said get to her, but he was really getting under her skin. "What did you have to do for that kind of treatment?" he asked, "Spend time on your knees or your back?"

Annie's eyes narrowed.

He pointed at the shoes sitting beside her. "You must be really good…" he said, "To have that kind of attention from the The Whore From District Four."

Annie threw herself at him with an enraged cry. She'd just managed to rake her fingernails down his face when Torsti had wrapped an arm around her waist and hauled her away.

"FUCKING WHORE!" Jarek yelled, his hand flying up to cover the scratches down his cheek. Annie just screamed at him.

"Shut your mouth!"

"Calm down!" Torsti snapped at her. "Remember where you are!"

Annie blinked. She was in the arena. Cameras were everywhere. The entire country was watching including her parents and people that could still become her sponsors. She took a deep breath and stood still, her hands clenched into tight fists. Would potential sponsors react favourably to what she had just done or not?

* * *

Finnick stared at the screen, biting his lip as Torsti hauled Annie away from Jarek. He'd not seen her react that way before. He hoped the audience had liked it. What would they think it meant? What did he think it meant? Had she been objecting to Jarek's comments about her, or had it been what the boy had called him? _The Whore From District Four_. He'd heard it before… Perhaps it had been both. He looked at the screen again. Both Annie and Jarek were yelling at one another and eventually Maverick got between them.

Finnick cast an eye around at the other Mentors. They were all watching the large screen in front of the couches, because of course the fight was the main focus of the Games right now.

"Your girl has balls." Chaff commented, flicking a glance toward Finnick. He nodded silently, watching as Torsti blocked Annie from getting around him to say something else to Jarek.

"Not now, Annie…" He murmured, hoping she would calm down. This wasn't the time for her to break off from the group. If she pushed much further, however; she wouldn't be safe if she stayed with them. He thought that maybe she'd realised the same thing before she suddenly stopped and took a slow breath.

Jarek was shaking his head though and looked at Inciness. "We're out." He said. The girl nodded.

"What?" Maverick asked.

Jarek bent and picked up a backpack. "Grab some supplies, 'Ness." He said, "We don't need you lot." He directed the end of his comment toward the others standing nearby. "We're leaving."

Inciness hurried upstairs with a backpack of her own while Maverick tried to talk to Jarek. Finnick looked toward Enobaria who was smiling widely, her pointed teeth on full display. He couldn't work out why she was so pleased, the Tributes stood a better chance together.

"I don't remember the last time the Career pack split this early…" Cashmere commented. Finnick agreed. Sure, the split was inevitable. It had to be. But, usually it wasn't until everybody else was gone and they had no other choice but to turn on each other. He didn't remember when they'd split like this over a fight like the one they'd just seen. He looked to Mags who was watching the screen silently.

"Mags…?"

She turned her eyes on him and raised a hand to his cheek. "Go and talk to sponsors…" she told him. "She has no money. She'll need it soon."

He nodded. "I know."

Enobaria just started laughing when Inciness came back downstairs and she and Jarek walked out the door. "What are you going to do, Annie?" Jarek called over his shoulder "When you're cornered all alone and Odair is too busy fucking his way through The Capitol to even notice let alone send you help?"

Finnick watched the blush spread quickly across Annie's cheeks once more as she visibly clenched her teeth in anger. She suddenly turned and went to sit herself down on her bedding. He watched as she took the weight off her injured foot, touching it gingerly. Apparently it wasn't as okay as she was trying to make out. She needed something for it. He got to his feet. He would have to go and find her some more money immediately.

Casting one more glance at her screen, he turned and hurried out of the room. There was a centre set up downstairs where wealthy patrons could gather and watch the Games together while deciding on who they would sponsor. Mentors could find several Sponsors down there at a time if they were good enough and knew what to say. Forcing a charming smile onto his face, Finnick headed down.

* * *

Author's Note:

THANKS FOR THE CONTINUED SUPPORT!


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty Three**

Finnick smiled stiffly at the woman who was running her hand up and down his arm. "Well, she does seem to have a bit of fire in her…" she said to him, "I especially loved that temper when she attacked the District Two boy."

"Yes," Finnick nodded, "She's strong."

"I think you're right." The woman nodded, reaching into her purse. Finnick gave a genuine smile. Success. He watched as she filled out the Sponsoring information and then looked back to him. "All done. Oh, just wait until my friend Claudine hears that I've sponsored her. If she wins it will be even better!" Finnick just nodded. "Oh! I just have to go and tell her face to face!" The women jumped to her feet and hurried from the room.

Finnick got up and moved around the room, looking for another person with too much money. That was just about all of them. He needed one that he could convince to sponsor Annie, though. That ruled out most of the young men, he suspected. Those types generally only sponsored the large and powerful male tributes from Districts One and Two. Sometimes they would back one from District Four, but only when the tribute was particularly impressive. He wouldn't be surprised if half of them were Torsti's sponsors, in fact. They would have little interest in sponsoring Annie.

He blinked when he spotted a young woman watching him with overt interest. Then, plastering another smile across his face, he headed toward her.

"Well, hello there…" She simpered, "…Finnick Odair."

"Hello, yourself." He replied, taking a seat casually across from her. He watched her lean back in her chair, adjusting the front of her dress so that it fell a little more open. He didn't really see the point as she didn't have much of a chest to be showing off.

"I'm Seraphina." She said, smiling widely at him. He nodded as if that pleased him greatly.

"What a beautiful name." He replied gently, "It suits its owner perfectly."

Seraphina giggled like a ten year old girl. "What they say about you is true, Finnick Odair."

"Is it?" he replied simply.

She nodded, twirling a strand of her fuchsia hair around her finger. "So…" she asked, sitting straighter, "What brings you down here?"

He just looked at her. "I would have thought that would be obvious…" his eyes went to the large screen covering an entire wall of the room. At that very moment, the camera was focussed upon Jarek and Inciness taking up residence in one of the other houses. He looked back to Seraphina who had turned her own eyes on the screen.

"Oh, you're after sponsors for your tribute…"

"I am."

"Honesty." Her indigo eyes flicked back to him. "I didn't expect that."

Finnick swiftly tried to reassess the woman. Apparently she was more than she appeared to be. "Isn't that why we Mentors come down here?" he asked. She just nodded.

"So, it's the dark-haired girl, then?"

"Annie."

"Yes, Annie…" Seraphina looked at him. "Do you really think she could win?"

"Yes."

"Hmm…" She nodded again. "Honesty…"

"She's stronger than people think. She's resourceful. She's clever…"

"Quite right." Seraphina said, "I didn't think she'd last as long as she has."

"And what does that tell you?"

She gave a wry smile, "That you're both very clever."

Finnick nearly laughed. "As you are."

Seraphina smiled again. "There is money to be made and it's all so easy when people underestimate you."

"Annie would agree." He answered.

"I think she would." Seraphina reached for her purse. "That makes me like her. I think she'll make me a fair bit of money… so you can have what you're after, Mr Odair."

Finnick watched her, pleased. Annie would definitely have enough for some medicine for the cut on her foot and probably a bit to spare now. He could head back upstairs, at least for the time being. When Seraphina had finished filling out the information, he thanked her politely and headed for the door.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to set when the cannon went off. Annie looked up from where she had been applying the medicine Finnick had recently sent her to her foot.

"Jarek?" She asked flatly.

"Who knows." Lumina replied softly. "I wouldn't think so."

Annie wrapped her foot when she'd put enough ointment onto the cut. "We should probably move tomorrow…" She said softly. "We can't stay here with Jarek and Inciness now hunting us…"

"True." Torsti agreed.

"Maybe Jarek will calm down and come back…" Lumina murmured. Annie looked at her. "Okay, maybe not." The girl added.

"We should gather as many supplies as we can and hide somewhere else." Torsti put in.

"Another house?" Maverick asked. Annie watched Torsti shrug noncommittally.

"Maybe… but there wouldn't be much point if they're all pretty much the same."

"There might be if we protect it differently. Just because they know what we have in here, doesn't mean we'd do the next one the same way."

"Valid point." The blond boy granted.

They all looked toward the window when the Capitol anthem began. Annie got quickly to her feet and hurried over to try and see who had been lost during the day. The first face to appear was that of the girl from District Seven.

"I wonder if Aidan did his own partner…" Maverick mused.

"Probably." Lumina replied. "Wonder if he was cruel about it…"

"Probably." Torsti put in.

Annie tried not to think about it, and just watched as the girl's face was replaced by that of the boy from District Twelve. Only two, then. Things were getting slow.

"They'll have to start trying to spice things up soon…" Annie said softly, turning away from the window.

"Who?" Maverick asked.

"The Gamemakers…"

"Oh, right…"

Annie walked back over to her pile of blankets. "It shouldn't be long now…"

As if on cue, the ground began to shake and Annie stumbled into the wall before sliding down onto her blankets. She looked around wildly as the shaking continued and a large splintered crack appeared across the wooden ceiling before everything stopped.

"Whatwasthat?" Lumina breathed, her eyes wide.

"Another earthquake…" Torsti muttered. "There'll probably be more aftershocks…"

"The ceiling…" Maverick muttered, "Guess we really should move to a different one tomorrow…"

"Agreed." Torsti answered, settling down onto his bedding. Annie pushed her hair back from her face and tried to settle herself down to get some sleep. She really needed the rest and didn't think that she would be able to get much from here on in the Games.

* * *

Finnick leaned back in his chair with a sigh. She was in bed now, he could relax somewhat. The cut on her foot should be mostly healed by morning, so that was one less thing to have to worry about. He watched as her eyes fluttered closed and sleep took her quickly. He closed his own eyes for a moment before Brutus' voice startled him.

"So, Seven was the one to turn on itself first this year, huh?"

"Shut up." Blight replied flatly. Finnick turned to face the other Mentors.

"Your guys seem to be pretty ruthless the last few years…" Brutus continued. "What's up with that?"

"Shut your mouth, Brutus!" Kera, the other District Seven mentor snapped. Finnick looked at her. The temper in her eyes was clear and if he had been Brutus, he wouldn't have spoken again for the rest of the evening. He'd not had much to do with Kera over the last few years, but you could feel the temper rolling off her in cold waves and he had no desire to ever be the focus of it.

Brutus didn't seem to notice or mind, however. "I wonder if anyone made any money off it. I have to say, it did seem like a pretty safe bet. That Aidan kid is missing a screw or two…"

Kera was on her feet in a second and standing before Brutus a second later. "Do you find this amusing?" She snarled, "Do you think it's fun to watch someone from your own District strangle to death an innocent girl you've known her entire life? Her name was Yulieta. She wanted to be a school teacher." Kera's hands balled into fists by her side as she glared up at Brutus. "The last thing she saw was somebody she lived just down the street from choking her to death… and clearly enjoying it."

Eventually, Brutus had the grace to nod and mutter an apology. Finnick stared. He'd never seen Brutus back down like that before. He watched as Kera returned to her own chair and look back to the large screen on the wall, though her eyes were unfocused.

Finnick looked toward Mags who was watching Torsti's screen silently. He didn't remember tributes from District Four ever turning on one another. They probably had, but it must have been before his time. He wanted to ask Mags, but thought better of it. Glancing once again at Annie's screen, he watched her sleep for a moment before leaning back in his chair once again and closing his eyes. He'd just rest them for a few moments.

* * *

Annie awoke with the sun shining in through the window and across her face. Groaning, she sat up and then unwrapped her foot to check on the cut. Biting her lower lip gently between her teeth, she traced a finger tentatively over where the wound had been. It was now a pink scar. "…wow." She breathed, releasing her lip. Putting her shoes on once she had inspected the scar for a few moments, Annie then got to her feet. She went quietly upstairs to get some food for breakfast and then woke the others.

When they had all had something to eat, they set about gathering what supplies they could carry and headed outside to choose a new house, preferably one that was undamaged by the earthquake.

"I say we pick one up the end of the street…"Maverick said, looking up and down the road.

"Why?" Lumina asked.

"Then we won't be surrounded if there are others in surrounding houses…"

"No, but we'll probably be the first port of call for anyone entering the town…" Annie said.

"There aren't that many left…" Maverick answered.

"Then we won't be surrounded." Torsti put in. "I vote for the middle. It'd hide us better."

"Fine…"

Annie followed them down the road to one of the houses in the middle of the street. Torsti went quickly up to the door and inside. The others followed carefully. It took them all of two minutes to determine that this house was not currently occupied by anybody and they set about making it their own. They dumped the supplies in one room and their bedding in another.

"We could bring more of the supplies down here…" Lumina suggested. Annie nodded in agreement. It made no sense to leave the rest behind, especially as it would easy pickings for someone else to get it now.

"You two can go get it." Maverick said, "Torsti and I should see about protecting this place."

"Yep." Lumina nodded, getting up from where she had just slumped down onto her pile of blankets. Annie watched as the blonde girl groaned and got to her feet. "May as well do it now."

"Alright." Annie agreed and followed the girl back toward the door.

"Who do you think will be next?" Lumina asked her as they headed back toward their old house.

"I don't know." Annie replied, thinking about it.

"Who do you want to be next?"

Annie slanted a look at Lumina to see her grinning rather wickedly at her. She didn't like the idea of hoping people would take one another out, but she couldn't deny that the idea of Aiden or Jarek being killed would bring her some relief. She told Lumina as much and the girl nodded.

Reaching the house, they went up the steps and inside.

"You head up to the supplies." Lumina told her, "I'll do a quick sweep down here to see if we forgot anything."

"Right." Annie headed upstairs.

She surveyed the pile of supplies for a few moments, trying to work out what would fit in bags with other things and be easier to carry. Bending, she picked up an empty backpack and placed it on a nearby table. It would probably be a good idea to put any medical things in there and carry them all together. They'd taken a lot of medicines and whatnot with them already, but it wouldn't hurt to take the rest. The door behind her creaked, and Annie turned to tell Lumina her plan. It wasn't Lumina standing in the doorway, however. It was Aiden.

"Hello, Annie…"

* * *

Author's Note:

Thank you to anybody still reading this and to those who are leaving reviews. It really makes my day.


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